The Verdict
by KholdstareV
Summary: Luigi's first night in his new mansion will become a night he will never forget as he unravels an age-old mystery that reveals the origins of the Boos and their King... that challenges the very rules of life and death...
1. Part 1

**The Verdict**

**By KholdstareV**

Luigi looked up at his glorious new mansion. The giant oak doors... the bright yellowish coloring... and the highlight of the whole thing - the giant green "L" embedded right in the top center of everything. It was truly a sight to behold.  
Mario walked up behind him and put his arm around Luigi's shoulders.  
They both looked up at the magnificent house before them.

Mario laughed. "Heh, who'd have thought? My little bro's a millionaire!"  
Luigi smiled too. "Well hey, I never would've gotten all that money had it not been for Professor E Gadd."  
"Yeah, I know," replied Mario," But hey, you still earned it, bro! Fightin' all them ghosts just to save me..."  
Luigi shrugged. "Well, I only did all that for a possible reward from E Gadd. Saving you was just a bonus!"  
They both laughed and walked together up to the big oak doors.

They opened up the doors at stepped into the huge, magnificent foyer. In fact, it looked just like the Foyer that Luigi remembered from the mansion from which he'd barely escaped alive...  
Mario looked around in awe. But he then looked at Luigi. "Luigi... is everything alright?"  
Luigi realized he'd been shaking a bit. "Umm... yeah, everything's great. It's beautiful, huh?"  
But Mario still looked a bit concerned. "You sure?"  
"Yeah... it's just... I didn't think E. Gadd had used the same layout as... that mansion to build this place..."  
"Is that a problem?"  
Luigi pretended to lighten up. "Of course not! I was just thinking that it would make it easier to find my way around."  
Mario didn't look entirely convinced, but he smiled anyway. This was no time to recall frightening memories. "OK. Let's go to the kitchen and start makin' dinner. Luigi, you've GOTTA invite the gang over for a party tonight. This is just too awesome!"  
With that, Mario ran through the double doors ahead into the hallway.  
Luigi smiled and ran after him. He was right - this was no time to think bad thoughts...

Mario and Luigi busily set up for the big bash that night. Luigi was making a turkey for dinner, and Mario was calling up people to invite over.  
"So Yoshi, can ya make it? Great! See you tonight!"  
"Yo Wario! Party at Luigi's new mansion tonight! Bring the chips, alright? See ya soon!"  
"Geno! Haven't seen you in a while! We're throwin' a party at Luigi's new mansion. Hope to see you there!"

As Luigi stuck the turkey in the oven, he was suddenly surprised to hear Mario having a rather silent phone conversation with someone. He slowly snuck over to the doorway and listened from around the corner.  
"Hello...? Yeah, hi. Listen, Luigi just got a new mansion, and we're throwin' a huge party tonight to celebrate. Wanna come?... OK, yeah, the party starts at 8, but you come a bit early... alright, cool... What's that? Why am I speaking so softly?... Umm, no reason, just... tired is all... Oh, don't worry, I'll be all hyped up once the party starts!... OK... OK, cool. Let's give Luigi a big surprise, shall we...?"  
The phone was then hung up.

It was clear - Mario was up to something. And who was on the other end? Luigi was curious, but also a little worried for some reason...

Eventually though, Luigi decided he'd best not ask who that was. He thought it'd be a bit funner if he beat Mario at his own game. Mario obviously didn't want Luigi to know who'd been calling, which means he probably wouldn't want Luigi to know they were arriving early. Luigi thought maybe he stand by the door and wait for the doorbell before opening the door and greeting the early guest himself! THAT would teach Mario not to keep secrets from him!  
Luigi smiled to himself over his plan as he placed the big turkey in the oven.

* * *

Everything was soon ready for the big bash. Dinner was set up in the Dining Room and the Ball Room was decorated for a big dance - complete with Disco Ball! It was about 7:30 by this point. The party was going to start in about a half hour, meaning this mysterious "early guest" should be arriving rather soon...

Luigi get ready and stood next to the door, waiting for the doorbell. Mario happened to walk by holding a 24 pack of Dr Pepper. He looked at Luigi curiously.  
"Hey Luigi, whaddya doing?"  
Luigi flinched a little. "Umm... I'm standing by the door in case any guests come early..."  
Mario raised an eyebrow and smiled a bit. "OK, do what you like."  
With that, he disappeared back into the hallway.  
Luigi was a little puzzled. Mario looked as though he would've_ liked_ to see Luigi answer the door for this guest. Wasn't it supposed to be a "surprise"...?

_DING DONG!  
_  
Luigi jumped. He smiled mischievously as he threw open the door.  
"HI Luigi!"

When Luigi saw who it was that was standing in the doorway, his heart suddenly stopped for a second.  
"Daisy! Heh heh... hi!"  
Daisy stood at the doorway in all her finery. She wore a lovely blue dress, which suited her flowery accessories quite well.  
"My God, she looks beautiful..." Luigi thought to himself.

Daisy happily jumped up and hugged Luigi. "It's been such a long time! How ARE you?"  
Luigi had to think a second before he realized he should hug her back. "I'm... I'm great! Just... great!"  
Daisy let go and held Luigi's arms. "I can imagine! I can't believe you have your own _mansion_ now!"  
Luigi blushed a little. "Yeah, well... not as much as I can't believe it! Besides, it's nothing compared to your castle."  
"Oh, don't kid yourself! This is WAY cooler than my castle!"  
"...You think so?"  
"Oh, of course!"  
"Heh... thanks."

Feeling a tad nervous, Luigi took Daisy's hand and led her in. She looked around the Foyer and marveled at its elegance. "Wow... it's beautiful!" she said. "Can we have a grand tour?"  
"Umm... well, actually, I was hoping to give everyone a grand tour sometime during the party."  
"Oh, OK. I can wait 'til then."  
"Alright. Umm... dinner's gonna be in the Dining Room, and the party'll be in the Ball Room. Why don't you go ahead on into the dining room and sit down? I have to umm... do something..." He motioned towards the double doors ahead.  
"Oh, OK," Daisy said little unhappily.  
"Oh, and try not to bother Mario. I think he's still setting up in the Ball Room."  
"OK..." Daisy repeated one more time.  
Luigi watched her walk through the double doors and walk into the hallway.

Once the doors closed, Luigi stamped his foot. "Dammit!" he yelled to himself. "Why do I always sound so stupid in front of her?! Oh... No wonder Mario didn't want me to know she was coming early. He didn't want me to make a total idiot of myself. Agh, serves me right for the eavesdropping. _Sigh_..."  
Luigi placed a hand on the stair banister the other hand to his forehead. He closed his eyes, breathed deeply and just thought...

_DING DONG!  
_  
Evidently, he'd been standing there for longer than he realized. The guests were beginning to arrive!  
Luigi thought for a moment. He had to answer the door, but he thought about Daisy sitting all alone in the Dining Room. Luigi couldn't be left being the guest greeter while Daisy was in the Dining Room by herself. He decided to ask Mario to do it and tell him to motion everyone to go into the Ball Room first so that he and Daisy could have some time alone. Who knows? Tonight might be the night to let her know how he felt...

_DING DONG! DING DONG!  
_  
The doorbell rang twice more. Luigi ran into the Ball Room, where Mario was just finishing up.  
"Mario," asked Luigi, "Can you answer the door for everyone?"  
"Sure," said Mario.  
"Oh, and please motion everyone into the Ball Room first..."  
Mario looked towards the Dining Room. He must've known Daisy was in there. He looked back at Luigi with a cocky raised eyebrow. "OK. I'll make sure you and Daisy have some private time."  
Luigi laughed nervously. "Heh heh... thanks Mario."  
"No problem. What are big brothers for?"  
Luigi walked timidly towards the Dining Room door.  
"And for God's sake, Luigi, just tell her already!"  
"Umm... OK!" Luigi called back.  
Luigi watched Mario run down the hall towards the front door. Luigi took a deep breath before opening the Dining Room door.

"Oh, hey Luigi!" Daisy said with a smile. She sat in the chair that Luigi remembered Mr. Luggs had sat in the haunted mansion. Seeing her sit there made him feel a little uncomfortable.  
"Hey Daisy! Umm... don't you want to sit at the head of the table or something?"  
"No, I'm OK here. C'mon, sit down with me!"  
Luigi reluctantly walked over and sat in the chair beside her. She smiled at him, and he smiled back.

"I'm still just so happy for you Luigi! I can't believe you have your own mansion!"  
"I know, it's great, isn't it?"  
"Seriously! So where's everyone else? I heard the doorbell."  
"Oh, Mario's leading everyone else into the Ball Room. The party'll be in there for the most part."  
Daisy suddenly looked a little serious. "So... we're alone in here?"  
Luigi felt his heart beat a little faster. "Uh, yeah. We are..."  
He then scooted his chair just a wee bit closer, just so much that she didn't really notice. "Umm... Daisy. I have something I really need to tell y-"

But Daisy was sniffing the air. "Is something cooking?"

Luigi just remembered the turkey in the kitchen had been done for some time now. "Oh, yeah, dinner's in the Kitchen."  
"AWESOME!" exclaimed Daisy. "Let's eat!"  
"B-but, Daisy-!"  
But she was already off.  
Luigi sighed. _Sometime tonight_, he told himself, _sometime tonight_...

Within minutes, the party was in full swing. People were in and out of the Kitchen grabbing turkey and snacks, and the Ball Room was lively with dancing. Guests had migrated as far as the Billiard's Room, where they played pool. Everyone was having a great time. Yoshi and Toad arrived first. Wario and Waluigi bought the chips after that. DK came as well, followed by Geno and Mallow.

Peach arrived last, accompanied by Toadsworth. "Mario honey, I'm here!" she called as she entered.  
Mario rushed up and took her hand. "How's my lovely wife doing this evening?"  
"I'm sure I'll be perfect once I'm on the dance floor with my handsome husband!"  
The two took hands and entered the Ball Room together.

Luigi was already in there, snacking away on Doritos. He wasn't much of a dancer, but all of the food had been moved into the Ball Room, so that's where he stayed. Daisy walked up to join him. She was gnawing on a turkey leg. "Yo Luigi! This turkey is the best! WAY better than the turkey the chefs make at my castle!"  
Luigi blushed. "Thanks. Is it really that good?"  
"Definitely!" She gulped down the rest. "So, you wanna dance?"

Luigi almost choked on the brownie he was eating. "Uh, umm... are you sure you don't just wanna stay here and eat?"  
"Well, it doesn't matter to me... it's up to you. What do you wanna do?"  
Luigi had to think about it a little bit, but finally found the courage to say, "Alright... Let's dance!"  
Daisy smiled as Luigi lead her onto the dance floor. A lively dance mix of the Mario theme was playing, so they began dancing casually and having fun. Luigi, having had recent experience in _Dance Dance Revolution: Mario Mix_ was busting out all kinds of wild moves. Daisy was quite impressed. "W00T! Go Luigi!"

But then, all of a sudden, the music stopped.  
And on came a slow, steady version of the Underwater Theme.

Luigi reluctantly took Daisy's hands and the two began to slow dance. It was probably the scariest thing he'd ever done, but for some reason, he loved it.  
"Oh boy..." he told himself. "I could really use some advice from Mario about now..."  
Of course, he wasn't going to ask Mario for pointers while Daisy was in his arms, but he at least would've liked to now Mario was nearby for moral support. However, as he and Daisy did a slow circle, he did a sweep of the Ball Room, he didn't see Mario anywhere. It seemed strange to him. Didn't he want to dance with Peach to this song? It had always been their favorite...  
Ah well, that was Mario's issue. All that mattered to Luigi right now was that the woman he loved was in his arms.

The two danced for a long time...  
Long enough for Luigi to gather the courage to say what he'd been wanting to say for years now...  
"Hey Daisy?" he said softly.  
"Yes Luigi?" she answered.

"I... have something I want to, err... need to tell you..."  
"What is it?" she asked.  
Luigi took a deep breath. "I..."

But just as he was about to say it, he saw the door to the Storage Room slowly shut.

On its own...

Luigi suddenly became nervous. He felt he was being watched by unseen eyes... He hated to do it, but he released Daisy and ran for the Storage Room door.  
Daisy was shocked. "Luigi? What are you doing? What's wrong?"  
Luigi didn't look back. His eyes were on the door. Who had closed it?  
As he held the door handle, he began to recall horrible memories. The haunted mansion's Storage Room was where all the Boos had been released, including the dreaded King Boo...

Images of King Boo then began to race through his head. Those red eyes. That wicked laugh...

Luigi closed his eyes as he threw open the door and looked into the Storage Room...  
And screamed as a large white figure leaped out of the shadows towards him.  
It was the last thing he saw before blacking out...

* * *

A short while later, Luigi's eyes finally fluttered open. Daisy was staring down at him, a look of concern on her face. Many of the guests had gathered around too, talking amongst themselves.  
"Luigi! You're awake! Thank goodness!"  
"Ugh... Daisy..." Luigi moaned. "Are we still dancing?"  
Daisy looked sad. "I wish..."  
Luigi sat up. He was still in the Ball Room, near the Storage Room door. He remembered dancing with Daisy, and then seeing the Storage Room door mysteriously close. He then opened the door... but he didn't remember what had happened after that.  
"Daisy..." he asked, turning around.  
But she was already gone.

"Dammit!" he muttered to himself. "I gotta talk to Mario. Where is he?" He looked around the Ball Room, but he was still nowhere to be found. He saw Peach though. "She'll know where he is," he thought. Easing passed the relieved crowd, he ran up to her. "Hey Peach, where's Mario?"  
She looked upset. "I don't know," she said sadly. "I wanted to slow dance with him to the song you and Daisy were dancing to, but right after it started, he said he needed to do something and just ran off. He's been gone for almost twenty minutes now. I'm getting worried..."

Luigi tried to remember what had happened after he opened the Storage Room door, but he just couldn't. Could that have something to do with Mario's disappearance?  
_Disappearance?!  
_No, Mario hadn't disappeared! He was in the house somewhere! "C'mon Luigi," he told himself, "Get a grip!"

Luigi decided to run an inquiry. There were a lot of people there. Surely at least one of them saw where Mario went. He walked into the hallway and saw Toad and Yoshi lounging around.  
"Hey Luigi!" said Toad. "Remember the time we were a team in Double Dash, and you fell off the back of the cart and got run over, and I was so busy looking back and laughing that I drove into a wall and blew up? Oh, good times..."  
"YOSHI!"  
But Luigi couldn't worry about that. "Guys, have you seen Mario? No one knows where he is, and he's been gone for almost twenty minutes..."  
"YOSHI!" Yoshi pointed towards the front door.  
"Yeah," said Toad. "Once you and Daisy started gettin' all lovey on the dance floor, Mario just bust-a-moved out of here. He didn't even say anything..."  
Luigi didn't quite understand, but he trusted them. Mario must have been outside somewhere. "OK, thanks guys!"  
"No prob."  
"YOSHI!"

Luigi darted towards the main doors, but just as he was about to grab the handle, the left door swung open into his face. "OWW!" he screamed, holding his aching nose.  
"Oh! Sorry Luigi."  
Luigi saw Mario standing in the doorway. He appeared to be quite tuckered out. "Mario?! Where the heck were you? You've been gone for nearly twenty minutes! Peach was worried about you!"  
"Umm, I was... You see, Toadsworth told me the light in the Washroom blew out, so I ran around out back to see if I could flip the Washroom's breaker switch, but I couldn't find it..."  
Luigi raised an eyebrow. "Uh, Mario? This house only has one breaker switch, and it's in the basement."

"Oh..." Mario said, sounding embarrassed.  
Luigi shrugged. "Well, we can worry about that later. Right now, I _seriously_ need to talk to you. Come on upstairs. There's a couch in Nana's Room..."  
"Nana's Room? Who's Nana?"  
Luigi closed his eyes and sighed. "Never mind. Just c'mon..."

The two walked up the stairs to the second floor. They entered a large room with a lot of sewing equipment, a couch, and a big rocking chair. Mario and Luigi sat down on the couch. They didn't bother turning on the light.

Once they were both settled down, Luigi looked at Mario with a serious expression.

"Mario, I need to know... how did you do it?"

Mario looked confused. "Do what?"  
"How did you tell Peach how you felt?"  
"Umm... well, we both just sort of knew it, that's all."

"That doesn't help me, Mario..."  
"Well hey, that's honestly the best answer I can give. What you really need to worry about is wondering how you're gonna propose!"  
"Oh, c'mon! Don't tell me it was hard for you to propose to Peach! She was practically begging you to!"  
"Heh, yeah. I guess you're right. It was always _'Mario, when are we gonna get married??' _and stuff. And when I finally did it... it was the happiest moment of my life."  
"I can imagine... I so badly want to reach that point with Daisy, but... I don't even know if she feels the same way."  
"Well, it's like I said. Once you both just sort of know it, then you'll immediately know the other one knows it, too. And that'll be the time to say what you want to say, because you know that's the one thing they want to hear..."  
Luigi smiled. "Thanks Mario. You're the best."  
"No problem. And really bro, don't worry so much. I know you've got the capacity for love. It's all about confidence, and I'll bet you have tons of it now, considering all that's happened."

"Yeah, saving my famous big brother from a bunch of evil ghosts... I guess it did do a lot of good for my self-image... But still, compared to all that YOU'VE done? For the entire Mushroom Kingdom? Like comparing a spark to the freakin' sun. I'll never have as much confidence as you. That's a fact."

"Hey, c'mon now. Sometimes too much confidence can be a bad thing. Overconfidence leads to pride, ya know, and not the good kind..."

"What do you mean? You're saying you have too much pride?"

"It gets to me sometimes, I admit."

"But I've never heard you never boast about your heroics..."

Mario shrugged. "Ehh, I _try_ not to, but... I've done some stupid things that I've tried to undo with my good deeds. Things I regret. Things I probably WILL regret. Heh heh!..."

Mario's laugh sounded slightly uneasy. Luigi noticed, but chose to ignore it.

"So with that in mind," Mario continued, "Maybe me getting kidnaped by stupid ghosts might have done me some good. Maybe."

"Hmm..." Luigi thought aloud, "Yeah! You know what? I think by saving you, I just kinda... stole a chunk of your pride and gave it to myself! Ha!"

Mario's faint smile went flat.

"Not that I meant to, of course. We were all just victims of circumstance, right?" Luigi went on. "But, well... Considering my feelings for Daisy... You'd have given it to me anyway if you could, right?"

Mario's expression was blank for several seconds. Eventually though, his faint smile returned. "Yeah, totally. What are big brothers for?"

"For getting in trouble so the little brother can save him and get some confidence of his own, evidently!" Luigi joked.

Mario chuckled lowly and nodded.

"Really though," said Luigi sincerely. "I appreciate the advice a lot, bro. Thanks."

Mario didn't answer, and simply nodded again.

The two sat in silence in the dark for a long while.  
Mario then perked up again. "So, you ready to go back down to the party? It's about 10 o'clock now, so things are just startin' to get crazy!"  
But Luigi wasn't listening.  
His eyes were wide with fright, staring into a dark corner.  
"Luigi? What is it?" Mario asked, concerned.

Mario couldn't see what Luigi was looking at, but over the faint banter of the party downstairs, Mario could hear a noise...  
_squeaksqueak squeaksqueak squeaksqueak  
_The sound of an old spinning wheel turning on its axis... Without any aid.

And as Mario's eyes adjusted to the darkness, he began to see exactly what it was he was hearing.

"Mario..." said Luigi, clearly frightened. "What's going on?"  
"I don't know..." said Mario.  
They watched in horror as the spinning wheel began to rotate slowly faster... and faster... and faster and faster and faster...  
Luigi appeared on the brink of insanity. He had to do something. Whoever - or whatever - was spinning that wheel wasn't going to stop. The two continued to stare as it continued to spin. Instinct would have perhaps told them to leave the room, or turn on a light, but both the light switch and door were right next to the phantom spinning wheel. Luigi and Mario felt safest on the couch, but they didn't exactly feel safe anyway.

Suddenly, without much thought, Luigi stood up and began to approach it slowly and carefully.

Mario became nervous. "Luigi! What are you doing?! Get away from it!"  
But Luigi continued to advance. As in response to the ever-shortening distance between them, the spinning wheel began to spin even faster, creating the horrible sound of wood screeching on wood.  
Luigi gulped as he was merely a foot away. The sharp needle jutting out at him seemed to glisten even in the darkness...  
The wheel spun wildly now. It seemed that any second the entire thing would fall apart.  
Luigi then reached out his hand. Why? To try and counter the wheel's spinning? He wasn't completely sure himself, but he reached out for it anyway...

_FWIP!_

Suddenly, the entire device leapt up into the air. It did half a flip, causing it to land right on the wheel. And as it hit the ground, the momentum of the wheel's spinning caused it to zoom forward like an out-of-control car. Luigi had no time to react. The spinning wheel shot forward directly into him. As it smashed and broke apart against his lower body, he stumbled backwards and landed with a thud.  
"Luigi! Are you alright?!" Mario yelled, jumping down from the couch and ran up to his brother's side. Luigi's legs had been slammed pretty badly, but he was OK... Or at least he thought so.

Mario examined Luigi's legs. "Oh my God, Luigi..."  
Luigi looked down too, and gasped.  
The spinning wheel's needle had driven into his right leg, right below the knee. His blue pant leg was slowly turning a dark shade of crimson. He could feel the blood run down his calf.  
He immediately felt it beginning to throb. "AAAGGGHHH!!" he cried in pain. "What the hell just happened?!"  
"I'm not sure," said Mario, "But I think he should get that taken care of right away."

Mario helped Luigi over into 2nd floor Bathroom and cleaned up the mess. Removing the needle was a slow and painful process, but they eventually got it out. The wound wasn't too deep, but it was nasty to look at. They immediately applied some alcohol and bandaged it up. Luigi then got into a new pair of overalls once he was able to walk effectively again, though it still throbbed with each step, and he had to resort to limping.

* * *

Mario and Luigi stood silently on the staircase for a long time, listening to the party going on downstairs. Mario was quite shaken up, but not nearly as much as Luigi. He appeared on the verge of tears.  
The two were silent for a while, until Luigi finally spoke a terrifying message...  
_"It's happening again..."_

Mario looked up at him. "What?"  
"It's happening. The ghosts... they're back. Back to take revenge upon me..."  
"No Luigi, don't scare yourself like that..."  
"Then how do you explain the spinning wheel, huh? How'd it spin on its own? How did it FLIP in the air and stab me in the leg, huh?!"  
Mario couldn't think of anything to say. Could the ghosts really be back? But how? Luigi had captured them, and Professor E Gadd had turned them back into paintings. Even King Boo. They were all captured and couldn't do any more harm...  
Right?

"Aw man... I wish E Gadd was here..." sighed Luigi. "You did invite him, right?"  
"Of course," replied Mario, "But he didn't answer the phone."  
"Oh..." said Luigi glumly.

Mario tried to change the subject. "Hey, how are we going to cover up that limp of yours?"  
"Umm..." Luigi thought, "We could make up a story, I guess. But we have to think of something quick. I bet everyone's wondering where we are."  
"Yeah, you're right, I'm trying to think..."

"Oh, I know! How about we say that I slipped on some spilt soda and landed on my knee?"  
"Naw, that's dumb..."  
"Uh, OK. How about... I was running upstairs to the bathroom and I fell on the stairs and hurt my leg?"  
"No, that's stupid..."  
"Sigh... I haven't heard any better ideas out of YOU!"  
"Oh, I got it! We say that we were setting up a game of indoor mini-golf upstairs, and while I was taking a practice swing, you were too close, so I ended up cracking you in the shin with my club!"  
"...Whatever, I don't care. Let's just go down."

The two descended the stairs back into the party area. "C'mon," said Luigi, "Let's get to the phone and try to call E. Gadd. If the ghosts are really back... he's the only one that can help me."  
As they walked through the crowds, a few guests did seem to notice Luigi's limp. "Hey Luigi, how's your leg?" asked Geno, "Looks like your having some trouble walking straight."  
Luigi was about to explain, but Mario broke in. "Mini-golf accident upstairs. We were setting up a course when I accidentally hit him with my club."  
"Oh..." said Geno, looking a bit confused. "Well, then... I look forward to playing mini-golf upstairs later!"  
"I bet you are." And with that, they continued into the Dining Room, where Mario had installed his telephone. There was currently no one in the room.

"OK, let's see if he's home..." said Luigi, picking up the receiver and dialing the number. The phone rang once... twice... three times... four times... answering machine.  
"DAMMIT!" yelled Luigi. "It's just the answering machine. He's not there."  
"Why not leave a message?" asked Mario.  
"OK," said Luigi. He waited for the tone.  
_"Hi, you've reached Professor E Gadd's residence. I'm either not home, or I'm too busy studying ghosts to care to answer the phone. Leave a message if you like, but I likely won't get back to you. Especially you, mom. Leave me alone, for Christ's sake! I'm like, 79 years old! Ugh... I feel like a chimichanga..."  
BEEP!!  
_  
Luigi began to leave his message. "Hello? Professor? It's me, Luigi! Listen, I'm... throwing a party in my new mansion tonight. You know, the one you built for me with all the money I found in the haunted mansion? Anyway, it's all thanks to you, so I was hoping if you might like to come. The party's just starting to get fun! OK, hope to see you soon. Bye."  
Luigi hung up. "OK, I left the message. I hope he gets it..."  
"Yeah, me too," said Mario. "But if anything, can't you just walk to his house? He didn't build your mansion to far from his place. It's probably like a 10-minute walk, right?"  
"More like a 10-minute run..."  
"Whatever. And isn't there anyone else you can ask for help?"  
"No, no one else would understand. And I especially don't want Daisy to know. I don't wanna scare her..."  
"Yeah, that's true. Well, I do hope we get a hold of E Gadd soon._ I_ sure as hell wouldn't wanna throw a party in a haunted house!"

Luigi's eyes grew wide. "Oh my God... Mario! The guests! They're all in horrible danger! We have to get them all out of here befor-!"

_DING DONG!_

The ringing doorbell interrupted Luigi's sentence. He and Mario looked at one another, confused. In a huff, they bolted from the Dining Room, though the hallway, into the Foyer, and up to the main doors. They threw them open.  
No one was there.  
All that lay on the porch was a taped up cardboard box. It appeared as though whoever delivered it did so in quite a hurry.

What was it? A congratulatory gift? Luigi hoped so, but he couldn't help but shake the nervous vibe he got from whatever might be inside...  
And stranger still, who had delivered it? Why did they throw the box on the porch, ring the doorbell, and run? If it truly was a gift, wouldn't they have wanted to stay for the party? Luigi wondered if perhaps the Professor had delivered it. Why would he do such a thing, though? The whole thing just made no sense...

Mario and Luigi looked at each other, then began to observe the odd package that lay on the porch of Luigi's mansion. Luigi stepped forward, drawn towards it yet repelled at the same time. Mario followed closely behind.  
"What are we gonna do with it?" asked Mario.  
"I don't know," said Luigi. "Do you think it's a gift? You know, as congratulations for my getting a mansion?"  
"Hmm... maybe. Though it seems like whoever left it really wanted to get rid of it!"  
"Mario, don't give me any scary ideas!"  
"Oh, sorry..."

Luigi reluctantly picked the package up. It was quite heavy.

He shook it around a little bit. Something hard knocked against the sides of the box.  
"Feels pretty big..." said Luigi.  
"C'mon, it's gotta be a congratulation present! What else could it be?"  
Luigi got a creepy vibe again. "...Is that a rhetorical question?"  
Mario groaned. "_Yes_, Luigi!"  
"Oh, OK..."  
"Seriously man, ya gotta chill. I say it's a nice gift from someone who just couldn't stay for the party, and that we should open it in the Ball Room with everyone."  
"...You sure?"  
"Yes. Let's do it. It'll make you feel better."  
Luigi looked down at his injured leg. "I hope so..."

Mario and Luigi walked into the Ball Room with the package. Everyone was either lounging around or dancing to the rock mix of the Super Mario Bros 3 theme. Mario took in a deep breath and announced, "Hey everyone! Luigi just got a present left at his doorstep! LET'S ALL SEE WHAT IT IS!!"

Everyone immediately took notice and began to gather around Luigi and his mystery package. Luigi spotted Daisy in the crowd, a couple rows back. He was almost afraid to open it with her nearby, but everyone else was urging him to, so he had no choice. He ripped the tape off the box. He opened the top and peered inside.  
Inside was something large, shiny, and red...  
Luigi pulled it out with wide eyes...

"It's a vacuum cleaner!" someone shouted.

Luigi stared at the vacuum cleaner in his hands...  
The Poltergust 3000.

As he held it, horrifying images flashed into his head. Images of that horrible night.  
And King Boo... King Boo appeared in his visions too. His eyes red with hate and vengeance.  
And Luigi heard that devilish cackle deep in the back of his head, growing louder... and louder... until it was an incessant ringing, racking his brain and penetrating the very depths of his sane mind...

At that moment, Luigi screamed, dropped the vacuum, and ran out of the Ball Room in a panic.  
The guests were left standing around, perplexed, with this red vacuum cleaner resting right in the middle of their crowd. Normally, one might have laughed at Luigi's frightened reaction to the seemingly humorous gift.

But no one laughed.  
By Luigi's reaction, they could tell that it wasn't just a little spook. This was definitely something much more serious...

But what could it be? After all, it was just a vacuum cleaner. Nothing to be afraid of...  
Right?

* * *

Luigi had run into the Washroom and huddled up in the dark corner. He suddenly remembered when he had opened the door to the Storage Room earlier that same night. The white figure that had lunged at him. In his head, he could now make out the figure's features...  
Glowing red eyes...  
A large, blue tongue...  
And a golden, jewelless crown...

King Boo.

King Boo had somehow escaped his painting and was hellbent on exacting his revenge. He had made the spinning wheel spin and drive its needle into Luigi's leg. Luigi knew it. King Boo was somewhere in the mansion, and he wasn't going to stop until Luigi was dead...  
But then how had he escaped?  
This was a question that only Professor E Gadd could answer...

Luigi then heard a voice calling his name. But it wasn't a ghost voice.  
It was a concerned voice. A caring voice...

Daisy.  
Luigi wanted nothing more than to talk to her right then, but he was worried about her. King Boo was likely watching Luigi that very second. If he found out that Luigi loved Daisy...

No. Luigi would never let King Boo touch her.  
Never.  
He needed to get her to safety, and if avoiding her now while he tried to solve this mystery was the only way it could be done, then so be it.

But still, he so longed to talk to her and explain everything... It made him nervous thinking about telling Daisy the truth. How he'd really earned the mansion, and that the enraged King of all Boos was in the mansion that very moment...  
However, she really did deserve to know. She was likely in just as much danger as he was, and it scared him that she didn't know it. He listened to her concerned voice from behind the Washroom door...  
"Luigi? Luigi, where are you? It's only a vacuum cleaner, Luigi. Everything's alright. Everything's gonna be OK..."

_Everything's gonna be OK...  
_  
Luigi hoped those words could be true. In fact, he had so much hope that he slowly opened the Washroom door and peeked out. He saw Daisy nearby, looking around with a worried expression. Luigi tried to remain somewhat hidden behind the door, but when Daisy looked in his direction, she saw him. She appeared relieved, but still very concerned.

"Luigi?" She walked over carefully and stood out in the lit hallway. Luigi remained inside the dark Washroom behind the half-opened door. She could barely see him.  
"Luigi?" she asked again. "What's going on? Please, tell me."

Luigi had a strong urge to tell her everything was alright, and that she had nothing to worry about...  
But that would be a lie. He needed to be honest with her.  
He sank back a little bit deeper into the darkness. "Daisy... I haven't been completely truthful with you concerning how I got this house..."  
Daisy still appeared more worried than mad. "What do you mean?"

Luigi told her everything. How he had won a haunted mansion, how Mario had been captured by the Boos, about Professor E Gadd, his Portrait Ghosts, the Poltergust 3000, King Boo...  
He then went on to explain how E Gadd had used the treasure Luigi found in that house to build Luigi a new mansion, how the mansion was built with exactly the same layout as the haunted one...  
And then the frightening sight in the Storage Room, and the haunting incident with the spinning wheel, and how he had nearly gone mad with fright at the sight of the Poltergust 3000 left on his doorstep...

Daisy listened to the tale with wide eyes. It was probably the most unbelievable thing she'd ever heard. Normally, she'd have accused Luigi of just being funny, but his behavior clearly showed that he was dead serious.  
Luigi finished off by lifting up his right pant leg and showing the bloody bandage under his knee where the spinning wheel's needle had impaled his leg.  
"King Boo did this to me..." Luigi explained. "He's back... Back to kill me and everyone else in here. Please Daisy... keep all this a secret from everyone."

Daisy began to tear up. She then rushed into the Washroom and embraced Luigi. "Oh Luigi, I'm so sorry all that had to happen to you..."  
Even after telling his horrifying tale and the ghostly incidents that had happened since, Luigi suddenly forgot everything once Daisy was again in his arms.  
"Thanks Daisy..." he said.

Daisy then looked at him. "I don't understand. How did this 'King Boo' escape from his painting?"  
"I don't know," Luigi replied.  
"And who delivered the Poltergust 3000 to your doorstep. And why?"  
"I don't know..." Luigi repeated.  
"We've gotta get a hold of this Professor E Gadd guy. He should be able to help us solve at least some of this mystery," she said thoughtfully.  
"That's exactly what I was thinking," said Luigi.  
"Great. Let's go!" Daisy was about to walk out of the Washroom when she spotted the light switch. "Geez Luigi, if you're so scared of King Boo, why don't you turn on the light?"  
"Umm... Mario said the light bulb burned out, so I didn't bother-"  
But before he could finish, the light flickered on. Daisy, who had flipped the switch, looked at the light suspiciously. "Mario said it burned out?"  
"He said Toadsworth said it burned out..."  
"Oh. That's weird. It seems totally fine to me."  
"Yeah..." thought Luigi, feeling rather suspicious himself.

"Well, anyway Luigi, should we try calling E Gadd?" Daisy asked.  
"He's not answering his phone. I left a message, but he still hasn't called back. If anything, we could just walk to his house. It's not too far away."  
"OK. And what about the Poltergust 3000? I think Mario took it to the Parlor to examine it. Should we investigate that, too?"

Luigi thought for a moment, and then made his decision. "Let's go to E Gadd's house first. He might be able to answer how King Boo may have escaped from his painting, plus I have to ask him why he built my mansion to the exact same layout as the haunted one."  
Daisy looked a little worried. "But what about Mario? And the Poltergust 3000? Whoever left it here obviously didn't mean to give it to you as a present..."  
"Mario can take care of himself until we get back. If we run the whole way, it'll only take about ten minutes."  
"OK," said Daisy, "But let's be as quick as we can. I'm worried about Mario..."

* * *

Luigi and Daisy ran out the mansion's front door into the cold, dark night. Storm clouds shifted unnaturally in the sky, and the two could hear thunder rumbling overhead. They ran through the woods as quickly as they could in order to outrun the coming storm. Within ten minutes, they reached a small brown shack in front of a massive empty lot.  
"The mansion..." said Luigi, pointing to the vacant lot, "...used to be right there."  
"Where did it go?" asked Daisy.  
"I don't know. Once I defeated King Boo, it just... disappeared."

Without another word, Luigi ran up to the shack and knocked on the door.  
No one answered.

He peered through the shack's only window.

There was only darkness on the inside.  
He then jerked the door handle.  
Unlocked.

Luigi slowly opened it and crept inside. Daisy held onto his arm and followed him in. They first were in the Laboratory, but the room appeared empty. They crept over to the ladder that led underground to the rest of the establishment. Taking Daisy's hand, Luigi helped her get started down on the ladder, then proceeded to descend it himself. Once at the bottom, he found they were in the Training Room. As he and Daisy walked through, he half-expected a ghost to pop out of one of the many chambers. He tried to keep calm and continued on towards the next door. Upon opening it, he appeared in the machine room...  
The Ghost Portificationizer.  
Just looking at it gave Luigi horrifying memories.

Daisy could feel Luigi shaking. "Luigi? What's wrong?"  
"...This is the machine I told you about that turns ghosts into paintings... and vice versa."

Oh..." said Daisy, not too sure what to say.  
As they walked through the room, Luigi sniffed the air. He smelled smoke. Had the machine been used recently...?  
But what Luigi really hoped to find, aside from Professor E Gadd, who was still unseen, was that King Boo's portrait was still hanging in the Gallery as he had last seen it. He needed to confirm that King Boo was still safely cooped up in that painting and that he and Daisy, and everyone at his mansion, had nothing to worry about...

Luigi carefully reached for the Gallery door...  
But as he did, he heard a creaking noise behind him. Daisy heard it too, and let out a small gasp.  
Luigi peered into the darkness...  
Something was moving around. Behind the machine.  
Luigi took a careful step forward...

And suddenly, a small, white object lunged at him!  
Luigi screamed and toppled back, as did Daisy. The small white figure flew at them like a ghost...  
_LIKE A GHOST!?  
_  
The white object was rushing at them with great speed. It almost reminded Luigi of the white shape he had seen in the Storage Room...  
But that had been King Boo... hadn't it?!  
Daisy was behind Luigi, clearly frightened. Hearing her cries gave Luigi the courage to rear back his arm and give the white monster a wicked punch in the face!  
"AAAGGGHHH!!" the creature screamed in pain. It stumbled back into the machine. It stood up on what appeared to be two small legs, scurried over to the light switch and turned on the lights.

Luigi gasped. "Professor?!"

Professor E Gadd stood there with an astonished look. His glasses were crooked and his nose was bright red, but he wasn't mad. In fact, he seemed quite startled. "Luigi? What in blazes are you doing here?! I thought you were a ghost, for goodness sake!"  
Luigi's racing heart was still settling down. "What? Really? W-we thought _you _were the ghost!"  
"Don't be ridiculous! I would neve-! Wait, 'we'...?"

Luigi turned around and looked at Daisy, who was still sitting down. Luigi took her hand and helped her up. "Oh, Professor, there's someone I'd like you to meet. Professor, this is Princess Daisy. Daisy, this is Professor E Gadd."  
Daisy bent down a bit to shake E Gadd's hand. "It's nice to meet you Professor. I've heard a lot about you!"  
"Well met, Miss Daisy. Heh, I'm surprised Luigi never mentioned you!"  
"Oh really?" said Daisy, giving Luigi a playful look. Luigi chuckled a bit.

The Professor released Daisy's hand. He suddenly sounded serious. "So what are you two doing here scaring the daylights outta me?"  
"Well," said Luigi, "I was throwing a party in the mansion you built for me, and I was wondering if you wanted to come..."  
But the Professor suddenly seemed nervous. "Oh... a party, huh?"  
"Yeah, that's what I said. I party."  
"With lots of innocent people...?"  
Luigi could sense E Gadd's anxiety. "Umm... yeah."  
E Gadd then gave both Luigi and Daisy a very serious look. "Tell me you two... What's the real reason you're here?"

Luigi and Daisy looked at one another and exchanged glances. Luigi then looked back at the Professor and explained his frightening experiences in his new house.

How King Boo had attacked him in the Storage Room...  
How the spinning wheel had impaled his leg...  
How the Poltergust 3000 had been thrown on his doorstep by an unknown guest...  
E Gadd listened intently to every detail. He nodded his head occasionally, as though he understood everything.

As Luigi told the tale, he tried to put the pieces together. Could E Gadd really be the one behind all this? He had built the house to the exact same layout as the haunted one... perhaps to help King Boo find his way around easier? And E Gadd was really the only one that knew exactly how the Ghost Portrificationizer worked. He could've easily freed King Boo from his painting.

And the Poltergust 3000... the Professor was the only one who could have logically delivered it! But why? Luigi really had no idea WHY the Professor would want to do any of these things, but at least Luigi thought he had a lead in this mystery...

Once Luigi had finished telling the tale, there was silence among the three. E Gadd continued to look down in deep thought. Daisy just looked as worried as ever. And Luigi just had so many questions he wanted to ask E Gadd.  
Why hadn't he returned any of their calls?

Had he delivered the Poltergust 3000? Why?  
Had he freed King Boo? Why?  
But what Luigi wondered most of all... Why had E Gadd built Luigi's new mansion exactly the same as the haunted one?  
Through all of his self-inquiry, Luigi suddenly doubled back to Mario's brief absence during the party...

After a while of silence, Luigi finally spoke. "Hey Professor, why are you being so... evasive?"  
E Gadd looked surprised. "Hmm?"  
"Well, you didn't answer any of our phone calls, you're hiding in your lab in the dark... what's going on? What are you hiding from? Heck, what are you hiding, period?!"

Luigi lunged forward a bit. E Gadd was taken aback by his anger. "Umm... You called me??"  
"Yes! Twice! First Mario called you to ask if you wanted to come to the party, then I called you while the party was going on. I even left you a message!"  
"Really??" E Gadd asked, clearly bewildered. He walked over to the nearby phone and checked. I showed that there was one message. He played it back. "Doh... I guess I didn't notice that."  
"But you've been in your lab all night, haven't you?"  
"Well, not ALL night..."

Luigi began to think. He couldn't explain why E Gadd would've missed Mario's earlier call, but... Luigi had called E Gadd and left his message, and about a minute later, the Poltergust 3000 had been delivered. Now either E Gadd had been home but just didn't hear the phone, or he'd been gone while Luigi had called. But gone doing what...?  
Gone delivering the Poltergust 3000!

Luigi looked at E Gadd angrily. "Alright Professor, why'd you drop off the Poltergust 3000?!"  
E Gadd struggled with his words, as thought trying to come up with an excuse. But then, he finally looked down and sighed. "Alright! I admit it. I did deliver the Poltergust 3000 to you..."  
"I kinda figured that out," said Luigi. "But why?!"  
Daisy finally spoke up after a long silence. "And why were you hiding in your lab with all the lights off?"  
E Gadd looked up. "I can answer both those questions with one explanation..."  
"What?" asked Luigi.  
E Gadd looked down again. "Something... horrible... happened in my lab earlier tonight..."  
Daisy got a little closer to Luigi. "W-what happened?"

E Gadd took a breath and began...

"Luigi, after King Boo's mansion disappeared, I went on studying ghosts as usual. In fact, the mansion incident had actually gotten me more interested in studying Boos and what makes them different from normal ghosts, as well as what makes King Boo different from normal Boos. The results of these studies have been absolutely astounding, but that's a tale for another time...

Anyway it was about 9:30, and I was getting ready to go to bed when I heard a noise in the machine room. It sounded like someone was fumbling with the controls. Naturally, I armed myself with the Poltergust 3000 and crept over there. Once there, I saw a dark figure placing a large painting on in the Ghost Portificationizer, as though ready to put it in reverse. I hoped whoever it was wouldn't be able to figure out how to set the machine in reverse, but my hope was shattered when I heard the roar of the engine and watched as the painting began to go backwards through the machine. In my despair, I let out a cry, and the figure heard me. With great speed, it sped forward and knocked me down before I could even fire up the Poltergust 3000. Whoever - or whatever - it was, they were soon gone. Once I got up, I remembered that a painting was going backwards through the machine! I tried to stop it, but I was too late. The sum of all my greatest nightmares came out of the slot - King Boo!

I tried to suck him up with the Poltergust 3000, but his eyes seemed to glow redder than I'd ever seen before. He used his darkling magic to lift me up and fling me against the wall. My back was injured, I couldn't move, and the Poltergust 3000 had landed several feet from me where I couldn't reach it. I could only watch as King Boo used his powers to make each portrait from my gallery, one by one, float onto the Ghost Portrificationizer. He stacked them all up so that when he flipped the switch, all the portraits would go through one by one and turn back into ghosts. Once they were all in position, King Boo turned the machine on, laughed in my face, and flew away.

By then I had recovered my strength, but it was too late to stop the machine. Thankfully, I was able to take the next best action. I grabbed the Poltergust 3000, and before any ghosts could escape, I pressed the vacuum nozzle against the slot and turned the suction on, forcing the escaped spirits directly into the mouth of the vacuum. I held it in position until all twenty-two of my Portrait Ghosts were trapped within. I don't know if King Boo would have tried to stop if he had been there. Perhaps he had anticipated my actions... Nevertheless, I was left standing there with a Poltergust 3000 filled with vengeful spirits. I knew I couldn't keep it long, so..."  
"...So you came to me so I could get rid of it," Luigi reasoned.  
"Precisely," said E Gadd.

"But I'm confused," Luigi said. "Why can't you just put the ghosts back through the machine and turn them back into paintings?"  
"I tried," E Gadd moaned, "But whoever set King Boo free short-circuited the machine. It now only can function in reverse... I wanted to deliver the Poltergust 3000 to you in secret and tell you everything. However, once I rang the doorbell, King Boo appeared out of nowhere and attacked me. I merely screamed, dropped the box, ran back home, and found a place to hide. I didn't get a chance to tell you why I'd sent it. I just prayed you'd figure it out on your own, though I never would've even risked it if I'd known there was a party going on..."

Luigi was about to say something in reply, but he suddenly remembered Mario, who was supposedly examining the Poltergust 3000 back at the mansion. The unbearable thought that his brother and everyone at the party could be in danger was too much for him. King Boo was already roaming around in there. More angry Portrait Ghosts would make things disastrous.  
"We have to go back," said Luigi. "We can figure this all out later, but right now... we have to go back."

Daisy and E Gadd looked at one another. It was hard to argue with him.

"Alright," said E Gadd, "Though I must tell you, a recent discovery I made concerning the Ghost Portrificationizer... Ghosts that become trapped within paintings tend to build up huge amounts of rage over time. If they happen to be released once, they likely suppress that rage and continue to haunt like normal. However, if they get cooped up in a painting twice... that rage is reborn with more reproducing at an astonishing rate. And if these Portrait Ghosts manage to escape a second time, they will let their anger be known, and the consequences can be devastating. You'd be surprised what power rage can give to a ghost..."

Luigi shuddered at the thought. All these Portrait Ghosts, with the exception of King Boo, had all been trapped in paintings two times in the past, and were now filled to the brim with vengeance. Perhaps King Boo knew this... had he freed them deliberately to harness this power of rage?

Luigi had no time think. "We'll take our chances. C'mon!"  
Daisy looked scared, but ready. "OK, but please be careful, Luigi..."  
With that, the three of them ran out into the woods and began to 10-minute run back towards Luigi's Mansion...

* * *

Mario had placed the Poltergust 3000 on the Parlor table and was examining it thoroughly. He had remembered Luigi using this vacuum to beat King Boo and his legion of Boos, as well as E Gadd's Portrait Ghosts. Maybe looking at it had given Luigi horrible memories? Mario still didn't quite understand why Luigi had seemed so scared upon seeing it.

A moment later, Peach walked into the room and saw Mario. She sat down beside him and looked at him. "Mario... you've been acting so strange all night. You were gone for nearly twenty minutes at one point, then when you came back, you went straight upstairs to talk to Luigi. And now, you're in here looking at a vacuum cleaner like some crazy detective. What's going on?"  
"I can't talk right now Peach. I'm busy," Mario said, not even looking up.  
Peach stamped her foot. "Mario, if this is about our marriage, then please tell me!"  
"It has nothing to do with that. Why would it?"  
"Well, I don't know! You ran off right when my favorite romantic song came on, and since then all you've been doing is worrying about Luigi. I understand why you would worry about him, consider what he's going through right now with Daisy and all, but still... I'm here too!"  
Mario looked up at her. "Who told you Luigi was in love with Daisy?"

"Luigi told me. A long time ago."  
Mario chuckled. "So he's told everybody but her, eh?"  
Peach laughed too. "Seems that way, but I do think she suspects it. She might not want to believe it, though, since people are sometimes scared to hear the things that they want to hear the most..."

But Mario wasn't listening. He found a small twist cap on top of the vacuum and was busy twisting if off. Once he removed it, he peered inside with one eye. All he saw was darkness. That was odd, since he suspected to see the color of the bag texture inside...  
Suddenly, out of the darkness opened an angry red eye that glared back at him.  
Mario jumped back in surprise, but didn't put the cap back on.

"What is it?" asked Peach, startled by Mario's action.  
"Nothing..." said Mario. "Umm... listen, I really should work in private, so if you don't mind, I'm gonna walk on over to the Study and continue in there. Bye."  
With that Mario got up and walked towards the door. Peach stood up. She was absolutely furious. "So you'd rather look at some stupid vacuum than spend some time with me?! Some husband you are!!"  
But he was already gone.  
Peach sat back down and began to tear up. Who was that man and what had he done with her darling husband...?

* * *

Luigi, Daisy and E Gadd arrived at the mansion's front door. Luigi was about to ring the doorbell when Daisy stopped him. "Wait Luigi, are you sure you don't want to go in sorta unnoticed? After all, Professor E. Gadd isn't here for the party..."  
E Gadd laughed. "Pssh! Of course I am! I still gotta a few good moves I remember from the 40's!"  
Luigi, though, decided Daisy was right. "Sorry Professor, but the more keep you're being here a secret, the more likely we'll be able to stay on the job."  
"Well fine," said E Gadd sarcastically, "I can see you're too COOL to be seen with an old kook like me!"  
Daisy laughed. "Yeah, it's too bad really. You'd be the life of the party!"

The three of them circled the mansion, checking to see if there were any windows they could enter through. They searched every window that they could on the bottom floor, but none were unlocked. Without losing hope, they soon spotted one second story window that looked to be slightly open. They could reach it by climbing the sill of the window directly beneath it. It was risky, but Luigi decided to try anyway. After a few moments of shaky climbing, Luigi finally managed to grab the desired windowsill, slid the window open, and hoisted himself up onto the sill. He peeked into the room, but it was too dark to see exactly what room it was. "Come on up, guys!" Luigi called. He then carefully dropped into the room, then turned around and looked down at the two below. Daisy was already making her way up, but E Gadd was staring up at the sky. Storm clouds were swirling overhead. Their movement was so unnatural.  
"Somethin' bad's a-brewin' here..." said E Gadd. "I can sense it..."  
"Well worse things will start to happen if we don't hurry!" Luigi shouted down. E Gadd nodded and hopped his tiny frame onto the window sill below. Now that Daisy had reached the window and was in the room with Luigi, they both aided E Gadd in his ascent until all three of them had made it inside.

The three were left standing in a dark, silent room. Luigi squinted to see in the darkness. He felt around until his gloves touched something big. It felt sort of like a cage, but it was open on the top. "Sort of like a crib..." he thought. A crib...

"We're in the Nursery guys," he said at last.  
"The same nursery where you fought the baby ghost, Chauncey?" asked E Gadd. Daisy nudged him, urging him to be quiet.  
Luigi used the crib as a guide to find the door, or at least the light switch. But as he stood over the crib, he felt a cool chill. It made him shiver, but only partly because of the cold...  
"So," thought E Gadd, "If we're in the Nursery, then the Parlor where Mario is should be just outside this hallway."  
"Yeah," said Luigi. "And speaking of which, I've been meaning to ask you - why on earth did you build my new mansion to the exact same layout as the King Boo's old one?"  
E Gadd was silent for a long time, until Luigi finally heard him sigh. "Luigi, I... I have a confession to make..."

Luigi stopped snooping around for the light switch and simply stood and listened. He fully expected E Gadd to say that he did it to make King Boo and the Portrait Ghosts feel more comfortable while they took revenge upon Luigi. It was the only explanation Luigi could think of...

"Luigi, I didn't build this mansion."

"WHAT?!" Luigi and Daisy asked in unison. With that statement, Luigi's entire hypothesis immediately went down the drain. "What do you mean? Who built-?"  
"Allow me to explain," pleaded E Gadd. He quickly cleared his throat and began...

"This mansion... has been standing for nearly 70 years. It was originally owned by a cruel, greedy man named Voltaire Mortegarth. He was so rich he had an entourage of royal servants do almost everything for him. However, they all hated him with a passion, so much so that one of them, an Italian immigrant named Leonard Rioma, revolted against him. Voltaire was so vain he hardly believed a lowlife like Leonard could do any damage, but his ignorance soon got the best of him. Leonard managed to seize all of Voltaire's wealth, including his pride and joy - his mansion. The very one we stand in. It left Voltaire so enraged that he vowed to get back at Leonard at all costs before promptly committing suicide on the mansion's porch. Out of respect for his old boss, Leonard buried the body within the depths of this mansion. He then continued to live there for several months afterwards, until unknown circumstances caused him to go insane. No one knows what happened - some say it was something to do with the mansion itself. Either way, Leonard ran away from here. Far away. Where he went and how he continued his living remains a mystery, but legend has it that Leonard returned to this place as an old man and died inside. Neither his body nor Voltaire's has ever been found. All I know is that this mansion has been empty ever since..."

Luigi and Daisy stood silently and listened to the tale all the way to the end. Luigi couldn't believe it. "So... if that's true, then King Boo..."  
"Yup," said E Gadd, "I didn't build this house based on the haunted mansion. King Boo built his haunted mansion to the layout of_ this _one..."  
"But why THIS house? What's his connection to this mansion?"  
"I've never found out..." said E Gadd.  
"And speaking of which, how do YOU know about this mansion?"  
"...When you plan on capturing a ghost, its best to learn as much about the haunting ground's past as possible..."  
"Wait... you captured a ghost here? Which one?"  
"Boolossus..."

Luigi closed his eyes and shook his head. "No no no... none of this adds up! None of this makes any SENSE!!"

"Wait, wait a minute!" Daisy cried. "Who is Boolossus?"

"He's an enormous Boo, the product of fifteen smaller ones combined," E Gadd explained softly.

Luigi wouldn't let the subject be changed. "Professor, you told me you BUILT this house! Why?!"  
"Well, I was afraid if I told you how old this house was, then I'd have to tell you its history. And if I told you its history... Luigi, I fear the ghosts of Leonard and Voltaire may still haunt this place. I knew you couldn't stand living in a potentially haunted house, so I tried to cover up the story by saying the house was brand new. I only used your treasure to completely refurbish it inside and out to make it appear so. Building a house from scratch is too hard of work for an old man like me. You know, lower back pain. Heh heh..."  
Luigi slapped his hand over his face and sighed. It seemed that with every question that was answered, another popped up. He soon decided it was far too much to think about. He merely continued forward through the door out into the hallway. "C'mon guys, let's go make sure Mario's OK."

No one said a word while the three walked towards the Parlor. However, upon opening the door, they found it to be empty. Luigi couldn't help the wave of anxiety that swept over him.  
"He must be downstairs at the party," Daisy deduced.  
"Now hold it," said E Gadd. "Luigi, you kept the GameBoy Horror I gave to you, right?"  
"Yeah," Luigi replied, "But I think I left it in the Billiard's Room somewhere."  
"Well it has a function that can locate the Poltergust 3000 anywhere, anytime! If Mario still has it, then we can use that feature to find him. Fancy going to get it?"

"Hmmm..." said Luigi. "I dunno. Maybe we should just check the party and-"  
"Oh, c'mon! Let's get the GameBoy Horror!" exclaimed E Gadd, excitedly running down the Foyer stairs. Luigi and Daisy looked at one another and shrugged. They followed him down.

The three walked through the hallway past the Ball Room door where the party was supposed to be taking place. As they passed, Daisy kept her ears open for sounds of the party, but she didn't hear anything. Maybe the party had finally settled down?  
And why were all the lights off? She had just realized that the every room they'd walked into since they returned was off. She didn't even see any light seeping out from under the Ball Room door as they passed by. Just... darkness. Evidently, Luigi had noticed it too. He looked around in the dark nervously.

E Gadd eventually led them to the Billiard's Room. The three walked in, and found that this room, too, was dark and empty. Luigi felt around for the light switch, but he couldn't seem to find it.

E Gadd had barely begun searching for the GameBoy Horror when he saw something sitting at the chess table in the southeast corner of the room. He immediately froze. "Nobody move..." he warned. Luigi and Daisy obeyed. E Gadd moved closer to the stranger sitting at the chess table. Whoever it was, they were sitting with their back facing them.

E Gadd stopped for a second - then leapt forward!

"WHOAREYOUANDWHATAREYOUDOINGHERE?!" he yelled.

The seated person screamed and nearly fell out of their chair. It was most definitely a woman's scream.

"Peach?!" cried Daisy. She ran over to the table, and Luigi followed. Peach turned around and stared at E Gadd, who looked quite embarrassed. She then looked at Luigi and Daisy, as though wondering for a second why the three of them were together. She finally spoke. "Who the heck is this nutcase?"  
Luigi cleared his throat. "Umm... Peach, this is Professor E Gadd. He's, err... an old friend of mine."  
"Nice to meet you Peach," he said, shaking her hand. "Sorry about that. For a second there I thought you were a gho-"  
Luigi punched E Gadd in the arm, promptly shutting him up.  
"Oh, well... nice to meet you too, Mr. E Gadd," Peach replied somewhat nervously. "You have, umm, quite a way of greeting people..."  
E Gadd laughed. "Well hey! Luigi never told me he was acquainted with such beautiful ladies!"  
Both Peach and Daisy giggled and looked up at Luigi. He looked at E Gadd, a little annoyed.

Daisy hadn't lost her nerve, though. "Peach, have you seen Mario? He has something that we really need to get our hands on..."  
"Yeah," said Peach. "He was examining that stupid vacuum cleaner like a total fool. I tried to talk to him, but he seemed so intent on looking that thing that he walked out on me. He went to the Study, so I followed him, but once I was outside the door, I stopped. It just didn't seem worth it. So that's when I decided to just come into the Billiard's Room and sit here by myself..."

"So he's in the Study?" asked E Gadd.  
"Well, he _was_, but that man's been all over the place tonight. Who knows?"

"Hey Peach, did you happen to notice anything strange about that vacuum?" asked Luigi.  
"What's everyone's deal with this stupid vacuum?!" Peach asked, exasperrated. "...But, come to think of it, I do seem to remember Mario taking off some twist cap, looking inside of it, and then jumping back like something inside tried to bite him. And then when I was outside the Study, I heard some weird noises coming from behind the door... but, I don't think any of those things are real important..."

E Gadd looked up at the dark ceiling lamp. "Say, Peach? Do you know who turned off all the lights?"  
"Why, no. A little after I walked in here and sat down, the lights just went off. Why? What does that mean?"  
E Gadd suddenly seemed nervous. "C'mon guys, we have to find that GameBoy Horror quick. Everyone look around!"

Everyone immediately began to search for the GameBoy Horror. Even Peach, even though she didn't exactly know what she was looking for. They searched for no more than a minute when Daisy called out, "I found it!"  
It was in one of the small brown drawers on the left-hand wall, which was beside some pool sticks propped up against the wall and beneath a dartboard. Daisy held the little device up triumphantly. Luigi smiled.  
But he suddenly froze when he heard a loud _clunk. _It sounded like something small and hard had just been dropped onto the floor. Luigi listened. It sounded as if something was rolling along the wooden floorboards. It seemed that he was the only one that heard whatever it was he was hearing.  
Luigi dropped onto the ground and looked beneath the pool table...

The 8 ball.  
It was rolling on its own...  
Right towards Daisy!

Luigi wasn't sure what this 8 ball was planning to do to her, but it couldn't be good. And he couldn't let it happen.  
But what should he do?! Luigi would've tried to stop the 8 ball, but it was moving faster than he could craw under the table after it. Besides, even if he could somehow catch, he'd be afraid to. What was moving that ball?  
Luigi did the only thing he could think of. "Daisy! MOVE!!"

A look of alarm struck Daisy's face. "W-What? What is it, Luigi?!"

Luigi pointed with a shaky hand at the floor. Daisy looked down at where he pointed.

And when she saw the 8 Ball rolling slowly towards her feet, she began to cower and back up away from it. She then bumped into the wall, and the 8 Ball proceeded to advance. "What's it doing?!" she asked fearfully.

E Gadd took notice and made a mad dash for the 8 Ball in attempt to stop it, but as he got close, an invisible barrier knocked him back, causing him to tumble backwards.

The 8 Ball wasn't stopping, and Daisy didn't do anything except stare as it rolled closer...

"DAISY! MOVE!!" Luigi screamed once again.

Luigi's command seemed to knock her out of a trance. Just as she did, she saw the 8 Ball begin to roll slightly off to the left, right into a pair of pool sticks leaning against the wall. When the 8 Ball struck them, they began to topple over in Daisy's direction...

Taking Luigi's advice, Daisy leapt to her side. Upon landing on the floor a few feet away, she looked back and watched as the pool sticks fell over. They struck the dartboard on the wall, causing six sharp darts to become knocked loose and fall. They fell like a rain of spikes. Daisy let out a shriek as each and every one landed on the wooden floor on the sharp end, mere inches from where she sat. They all stuck into the wooden ground and stood upright. Had Daisy stayed where she was, they would have easily pierced her skull.

Nobody moved for a long time. Daisy was especially still. She continued to stare at the darts that had nearly rained upon her. The needles on them were so long, so sharp. Not like normal darts at all. She couldn't hardly bear thinking about what might have happened...

Peach at last jogged over to help her up. "My goodness! Are you alright, Daisy??"

As Daisy was helped up, she merely nodded, still looking at the darts stuck into the floor.

E Gadd then slowly walked over. "So Daisy... You got the GameBoy Horror, did ya?"

Daisy looked at him, then handed the GameBoy Horror to him without a word.

"Thank you," E Gadd said quietly. "Now then, let's see here..." He turned on the device and switched the Poltergust 3000 Radar on. After looking at the screen for a few seconds, he nodded slowly. "Yup. The Poltergust 3000's in the Study. Guess Mario's still there with it. Come on gang, let's go catch up with him before he leaves..."

E Gadd then looked at Peach and Daisy, who still looked very upset. "Ladies first," he said, motioning towards the door.

Peach nodded and led Daisy towards the door. As they walked, they passed Luigi. Luigi looked at Daisy sorrowfully. He couldn't find the words to say. "Daisy, I..."

Daisy just looked up at him with sad eyes, which even looked somewhat angry...

Seeing Daisy look at him that way was like a stab to his chest. He didn't say any more as the two girls left the room.

E Gadd walked up to Luigi. "Hey Luigi, you uhh... Gonna come with us?"

Luigi sighed. "I'll catch up in a sec. You go ahead with them..."

"Sure thing."

E Gadd walked through the door, and gently closed it. Luigi was left in the dark Billiard's Room to his lonesome.

Almost immediately, he threw his hand over his face and cursed to himself. How could he have not done anything?! Why did he do nothing more than just tell her to move?! Hell, even E Gadd had made more of an effort to help her than he had! Luigi was so frustrated with himself he slammed his fist down on the pool table.

His first opportunity to save his princess, and he blew it... If only he'd have tried harder to stop that 8 Ball, Daisy at the very least might have thanked him for trying.

Then, as he began to think about it... What the hell was it that made the 8 Ball roll on its own?

Luigi suddenly began to feel cold. Ice cold. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end...

He had a feeling he was being watched.

Forcing the feeling away, Luigi began to walk quickly towards the door to catch up with the other three. The very least he could do was apologize to Daisy for being such a coward. Then maybe she'd at least forgive him...

Luigi reached for the doorknob... And then stopped.

In the reflection in the big mirror on the north wall, something strange caught his eye...

In the middle of the room, near the pool table, there floated a tall, faint bluish haze that held something long in its... hand?

It reminded Luigi of Slim Bankshot holding his pool stick...

Luigi shook his head. No. Slim Bankshot wasn't free. He hadn't tried to kill Daisy. It was all just a trick his troubled mind was playing on him. The Portrait Ghosts were still trapped inside the Poltergust 3000...

Luigi looked away from the mirror and into the room.

He saw nothing.  
Luigi breathed deeply and opened the door, walking back out into the hallway. There was no way the ghosts had been freed already. No way...

Luigi soon met up with E Gadd in the hall.

"Luigi..." E Gadd asked, "Should we head for the Study now?"  
"Yeah," said Luigi, "But where are Peach and Daisy?"  
"They said they wanted to go into the Conservatory to have some girl talk or somethin'..."  
Luigi suddenly remembered Melody, the ghost of the Conservatory, and felt a tinge of fear.  
"Luigi, maybe you should talk to her..." E Gadd advised out of the blue.  
Luigi wasn't sure what to do. Despite how much he desperately wanted to talk to Daisy and apologize to her, the apparition he'd seen in the Billiard's Room really had him worried. He needed to make sure the ghosts were still within the Poltergust 3000 and that Mario and everyone else was safe. He could talk to Daisy immediately afterward, but the Poltergust 3000 couldn't wait any longer.  
"I will, Professor," said Luigi. "We have to go see Mario as soon as possible. I need to make sure everything's OK."  
E Gadd looked up at him. "Alrighty, but let's be quick."

The duo ran up the Foyer steps, through the door, into the hallway, and stopped outside the Study. E Gadd checked his GameBoy Horror radar. Indeed, the Poltergust 3000 was beyond that door. Hopefully, Mario was too.  
Luigi carefully gripped the handle, twisted it, and threw open the door.

Luigi and E Gadd stared in the room in fear.

It was empty.

The two slowly walked in. "M-Mario?" Luigi asked nervously. "Are you in here? Oh God, please tell me you're in here..."

They began to look around. Luigi was confused. He didn't see Mario anywhere... Was he hiding? Why would he be?

E Gadd was still looking at his GameBoy Horror. "I don't understand... This thing says my Poltergust 3000 is in here! But where it is? And where's Mario?"

"I don't know..." Luigi answered, suddenly starting to feel very nervous.

A sudden cry from E Gadd made Luigi jump. "LUIGI!! Come over here!"

Luigi heard E Gadd's voice from behind the desk in the rear corner of the room. He quickly ran over to see what the deal was. Once he saw what E Gadd was pointing at, his eyes went wide with fear.

There lay the Poltergust 3000... Broken in two.

E Gadd dropped two his knees and picked up the two pieces. He then stood up and examined them. It looked as though someone with monstrously strong hands had just pulled it apart. E Gadd dropped the two halves on the table. "It's hopeless..."

Luigi grew frantic at that moment as he grabbed the pieces of the Poltergust 3000. "No... No no no NO!!" he screamed, trying desperately to shove the two halves together again.

E Gadd stopped him. "We're too late, Luigi! The ghosts... they've already been freed. There's nothing we can do now..."

Luigi knew what E Gadd was saying was true, but he just couldn't bring himself to believe it. All this time, he'd had himself convinced that the Poltergust 3000 had no chance of faltering and that the ghosts would be trapped in there no matter what. But at that moment, the truth had come like a fist that socked him in the gut.

All of E Gadd's Portrait Ghosts were free. And filled with unspeakable rage, just as E Gadd had warned. Rage that granted them new and terrifying powers...

And Mario was nowhere to be found. Perhaps the ghosts had ravaged him horribly upon being set free, leaving not even a single drop of his blood. The thought terrified Luigi...

He knew now that the apparition he'd seen in the Billiard's Room had been real. Slim Bankshot really had tried to kill Daisy...

And where were Luigi and E Gadd? The Study... Where Neville was!

With wide eyes, Luigi slowly turned around and looked towards Neville's rocking chair...

And his gaze was met by a pair of blood-red eyes. Eyes that belonged to none other than Neville, the bookish father!

"AAAUUUGHHH!!" Luigi screamed, dropping the Poltergust 3000's pieces on the ground.

"What? What is it, Luigi?!" E Gadd asked.

Luigi pointed a shaky finger. "N-N-NEVILLE!!"

Luigi and E Gadd cowered in the corner as Neville rose from his rocking chair and floated towards them menacingly. He held his book high up in the air, as though hoping to use it as a weapon. But... what damage could a book do? Well, considering what the spinning wheel and 8 ball had done, Luigi and E Gadd weren't sure they wanted to know.

Neville's eyes flashed red with anger as he opened up the book in his hand and ripped out a few pages. What was he planning to do? He held up the pages and threw them like ninja stars. Luigi and E Gadd jumped back out of their way, and watch as they shredded through the chair behind the desk and sliced it into several pieces.  
"Dang," said E Gadd, "That's a hell of a paper cut..."  
"Professor!" Luigi pleaded, "What are we gonna do?! Without the Poltergust 3000, we can't do anything to-!"  
That was the last he could say before ducking down and dodging another set of ultra-sharp pages which shaved off the corner of the desk.  
From his position, Luigi spotted the cover of the book Neville was reading...  
"Johnny Tremain"

"Ugh," said Luigi. "No wonder Neville has no problem ripping out the pages and risking getting blood all over them. This guy's gotta get a better book to read..."  
E Gadd snapped his fingers. "That's IT! Luigi, you're a genius!"  
"I am?!"  
"Yes! You see, no matter how vengeful a ghost becomes, that rage can never overpower the reason why a ghost stays on Earth even after death!"  
"I'm sorry, I didn't quite get that..."  
"His unfinished BUSINESS! Don't you see? All ghosts have unfinished business! That's why they don't cross over!"  
"Oh... so?"  
"SO... Neville's reason for remaining on earth was to finish all the good books in his library! If we can just find him a better book, he'll likely revert back to his usual reading state!"  
"Oh..." said Luigi.  
"OK, so let's just mozey on over to the bookshelves and have a look..."  
"Umm... E Gadd?"

"Yeah?"  
"Neville is, like, two inches in front of your face."

E Gadd looked away from Luigi and at the snarling ghost face in front of him. Neville raised the book, which was partway open with razor sharp pages sticking out, and swung across. Luigi pulled E Gadd backwards at the last second. The pages sticking out of the book would have easily slashed through E Gadd's throat. "C'mon! Let's hurry!"  
Luigi and E Gadd bolted towards the bookshelf and began the mad hunt for a good book. Luigi was having some difficulty. "Little Women? No... Scarlet Letter? No good... Biography of Whoopi Goldberg? Where the hell does he find these..."  
Luigi ducked down to avoid a mad swipe from Neville. It slashed the spines of all the books Luigi had been looking through. He proceeded to search through the books on the bottom shelf.

"HEY!" he heard E Gadd call. "Is Antigone a good book!?"  
"Too old!" Luigi answered.  
"How about Moby Dick?"  
"Too long!"  
"How about this, ummm... 'On the Flipside' by KholdstareV?"  
"Who the hell is that?!"  
"I don't know!"  
"Then it probably sucks! Keep looking!"

Luigi finally came across one that looked interesting. It had a picture of a boy and a dog on the front. It was called "The Phantom Tollbooth". Without much thought, Luigi whipped around with the book in his hand. E Gadd was busily searching when Neville was sneaking up behind him, holding a paper airplane that looked sharp enough to pierce through bone. He raised his arm, ready to throw it at the back of E Gadd's head.  
"NEVILLE!" Luigi cried just in time.

Neville turned and looked at Luigi, his eyes flashing red.  
"Umm... might I recommend this book?" asked Luigi, shutting his eyes.  
Neville floated up to him and took the book in his hand. He looked at the cover, then read the back.  
He then looked at the ruined"Johnny Tremain"book in his other hand...

And dropped it.

_"Thank you," _Neville replied graciously._ "That Johnny Tremain book was boring me to tears! But this one seems interesting enough..." _With that, he floated back to his rocking chair and began to read. As he did, the evil glow in his eyes slowly faded.

After a few moments of awkward, yet relieving silence, E Gadd walked up to Luigi, the remains of the Poltergust 3000 in his hands. "It's totaled," he said. "She'll never work again..."  
"So... it's unfixable?" Luigi asked, even though he pretty much already knew the answer.  
"C'mon. Neville seems pretty interested in his book, so let's just leave quietly..."  
The two walked out of the Study, leaving Neville behind with his good book.

The two returned to the Foyer and stood on the steps. And it was because they were safe that they now suddenly realized the situation they were in...  
They were too late. The Portrait Ghosts were freed. King Boo was now completely running the place. Luigi's Mansion was now filled with blood-thirsty spirits. All their friends and loved ones were lost somewhere within the walls, and God knew whether or not they were alive or dead...

Luigi then remembered what E Gadd had said about ghosts and their unfinished business. What would happen if this business was finished? Would they cross over and live in peace...?  
With the Poltergust 3000 utterly destroyed, Luigi began to think hard about this. Perhaps helping these vengeful spirits reach their goals and cross over may be their only offense against them. Maybe they could help all of the Portrait Ghosts finally find peace in Heaven or Hell...  
Maybe even King Boo...?

But as Luigi stood, thinking, he suddenly remembered Daisy and Peach. They were in the Conservatory, where the ghost pianist Melody Pianissima had resided in King Boo's ghost mansion. It made him worry that they could be in danger even at that very moment. He wanted to ask E Gadd about possibly helping the ghosts cross over, but thinking of Daisy and Peach made him very nervous. Besides, E Gadd probably didn't care much about helping the ghosts cross over anyway, seeing as he felt the need to imprison them inside paintings for their entire afterlives in the first place...  
"C'mon Professor," said Luigi, running down the steps. "Daisy and Peach might be in trouble! You did say they were in the Conservatory, right?"  
E Gadd began to run down the stairs after him. "Oh yeah, the Conservatory where you captured Melody!"  
"Yeah, that one," said Luigi glumly.  
"But all she does is play the piano. What can she possibly do?"  
"Well, considering how much Neville can do with just a book, I really don't wanna find out."

Luigi and E Gadd ran through the dark hallway towards the Conservatory. As they ran by the door to the Ball Room, Luigi took another glance to see if there was any light coming from underneath the door.  
He saw none. The Ball Room was pitch dark.  
Now that he knew the Portrait Ghosts had been freed, he shuddered to think about what may have happened to all the guests...

Eventually, the duo burst through the door to the Conservatory. This room, too, was void of any light. The whole house seemed to be. Perhaps the release of the ghosts had caused a blackout? Luigi felt around the wall for a light switch. He found none. It also seemed that every light switch in the house had simply disappeared...

They saw Daisy and Peach had each taken a seat on top of one of the three drums on the northern side of the room. Daisy was looking down, almost as though she were in tears. Peach looked as if she was trying to console her. When they saw Luigi and E Gadd enter, they both looked up at them. Daisy, however, looked right back down again. Peach hopped off the drum and walked over to them.  
"Luigi!" said Peach sternly, "What is going on here?!"  
"I don't have time to explain now..." he said, taking a nervous glance at Melody's piano chair. "This room isn't safe. We have to get out of here." He called over to Daisy. "Daisy! We have to get out of this room! Please, listen to me!"  
Daisy looked up at him, her expression sad and angry at the same time. It broke Luigi's heart to see her look at him like that. She then looked back down again.  
Luigi understood how she felt. Most people didn't handle near-death experiences too well. But the fact that he could have helped her... it made him feel terrible. "Listen Daisy, I'm so sorry I didn't-"

But before he could finish, he heard the door slam shut. He, E Gadd, and Peach all whipped around and looked. Even Daisy looked up, her eyes now wide with terror.  
And then they heard a single piano key.  
A soft, high-pitched piano key.  
At any other time, it would have sounded beautiful, but now, it struck fear in all their hearts...

They heard another note...  
And another...  
Until they heard the slow paced piano notes start to string together into a song. A horrible song. A song that brought thoughts of death to all their minds...

The song then began to play faster, and louder. As it continued to grow in intensity, Luigi felt a throbbing pain in his head. He looked over at E Gadd and Peach, who were right next to him. They too were succumbing to the horrible effects of the mysterious song.  
Luigi then looked over at Daisy. She appeared ready to pass out from the extreme pain in her head. At that moment, Luigi forgot all about his own pain and approached her. As he did, he looked at the piano chair...  
And saw Melody, pounding on the keys like a madwoman, her eyes glowing red like fire. She looked at Luigi and gave him a wicked smile.

At that moment, Luigi looked back at Daisy. Her pain must have been unbearable. When Luigi was only a few feet from her, he reached out his hand, hoping to help her, somehow. But he, too, soon felt on the verge of faint. The evil melody pounded in the back of his skull with such intensity. He finally lost it and toppled forward. His outstretched hand missed Daisy and instead landed hard on the drum next to the one she sat on...  
_BUUUMMM!  
_  
In an instant, the evil song stopped. Sweat on his face, Luigi looked back at Melody. The red glow in her eyes had dimmed, and she stared into space as though the drum beat had awakened something within her.  
Luigi then remembered how when Neville started reading the Phantom Tollbooth, the glow in his eyes had receded as well...  
Could the drum beat have been the key to Melody's crossing over...?

Feeling hopeful, Luigi looked around the room. There were three drums, a xylophone, a harp, a cello, and a saxophone. Daisy, Peach and E Gadd seemed to have recovered as well. Maybe they could put on a performance? It seemed as though that's what Melody was waiting for...

Luigi could see Melody's angry eyes suddenly begin to glow red again. He knew he had to organize this symphony quick. He ran over to the saxophone and picked it up. He then jumped on top of the drums and began to dance upon them. He wasn't sure he was making a great sound, but at least he had rhythm. Melody seemed to have picked up on this rhythm and began to play the "Super Mario Theme", just as she had done before.  
"E Gadd, go grab the cello," Luigi ordered.

E Gadd obeyed and ran over to it.

"Peach, try the xylophone."

Peach reluctantly picked up the sticks and began to play.

"Daisy... wanna play the harp?"

Daisy merely nodded and walked over.

Within minutes, the orchestra was in full swing. Luigi danced atop the drums, trying to keep a steady beat, while tooting on the sax. E Gadd was playing the cello surprisingly well, and while he may not have hit every right note, he was on tempo the whole time. Peach seemed absolutely clueless with her xylophone, but thankfully, the other instruments drowned out her spastic performance. But Daisy... she was playing the harp like an angel. Luigi felt his heart go all aflutter with each harp string he heard her run her fingers across. All this was topped off by Melody's fine piano sonata.  
But something wasn't right. Luigi had done this back at the haunted mansion, he remembered. Nothing had happened then, and nothing was happening now.  
Something was missing...

From the top of the drums, Luigi looked around the room for an instrument they perhaps missed...  
And he spotted a triangle on the ground, right next to Peach.  
"Peach!" he cried between sax notes, "Grab that triangle by your foot!"

Peach looked down and saw it. She dropped one of her xylophone sticks and picked the triangle up.  
"Peach, right at the song's climax, hit it!"  
"OK!" she called back, continuing to play the xylophone with one stick.

The song's climax was coming soon. Luigi was ready to call out...  
_DOO Doo doo doo, Doo, doo Doo DOO, doo Doo DOO, DOO Doo...  
_"Now!" he yelled.  
At that moment, Peach used the stick in her hand to strike the triangle.  
_DOO! _

_TING!__**  
**_

At that moment, Melody rose from her chair. The evil red glow in her eyes had all but vanished. She held out her arms and looked towards the Heavens.

She then closed her eyes... and within a blink's moment, she disappeared into the sky with a flash of light.  
Luigi knew it. She had crossed over. She was on her way to the Great Beyond...

The four stopped playing their instruments and walked together into the middle of the room.

"What just happened?" asked Peach.  
Luigi was about to answer, but E Gadd beat him to it. "She has finished her unfinished business - playing a perfect performance of the Mario theme - and has now peacefully ascended to Heaven..."  
Daisy then looked at Luigi and E Gadd, a look of fear on her face. "But... if she was here, then that means... Mario..."  
"He couldn't contain the ghosts. They escaped..." said Luigi glumly. "And I think that... the incident in the Billiard's Room was a result as well..."  
She gasped. "And what about all the party guests?"  
"They're gone..."

"And Mario?" Peach asked, worried.  
E Gadd and Luigi looked at each other. Peach had a feeling she knew what they were thinking - Mario was missing too.

Peach then grunted in frustration."I still have no idea WHAT is going on here! Daisy, you obviously do! Why haven't you told me!"  
"Well, I figured there was no need to so long as the ghosts weren't freed..."  
"GHOSTS?! What ghosts?!"  
Knowing there was no point in keeping it a secret anymore, Daisy, Luigi, and E Gadd told Peach the entire tale. Every single detail.

When it was finished, Peach was stunned. "My God... We're trapped in a mansion full of evil spirits!? And all the guests are missing? And my Mario... Where is he?!"  
"We don't know," said Luigi. "We just have to stick together and find everyone."  
"But what about the ghosts?! How do we know they haven't just killed everyone yet?"  
"We just have to pray..."  
"And what do we do after we escape? Just leave the ghosts here? They'll probably just follow us wherever we go until we're all dead!!"

Luigi suddenly realized that Peach might've been right. No matter where they went, the ghosts would follow. King Boo... he would never cease his hunt for Luigi until he was dead. Luigi knew it...  
But Luigi then cracked a grin. "Not if we help them all cross over..."  
"You mean... like Melody did?" asked Peach.  
"Yeah, just like her."  
"So... we just need to learn every ghosts unfinished business and help them finish it!"  
"Exactly!"

Daisy had been thinking. "Hmm... I wonder what King Boo's unfinished business could be...?"  
Luigi thought about that too. What might be the unfinished business of the King of all Boos? He stole a quick glance at E Gadd, who looked as though he knew the answer, and it wasn't good.

E Gadd finally spoke. "OK team, let's split up. It will increase our chances of finding any missing guests!"  
"And any ghosts that need help crossing over!" Luigi finished.  
"Yeah, that too..." said E Gadd, though there was a certain sorrow in his voice when he said it.  
"Alrighty then. How should we split up?"

Luigi looked over at Daisy, who still looked rather upset. He really needed to talk to her. "Daisy and I can go together."  
"OK," said E Gadd. "So I guess Peach and I will be a team. How's about we check the second floor and you two check the first?"  
"Sure thing," said Luigi.

E Gadd walked towards the Conservatory door, with Peach behind him. "Wait," said Peach. "If we do happen to find someone, we should all meet somewhere."  
"Good thinkin," said E Gadd, "Let's see. I say in precisely one hour, we all meet in the..."

"Foyer," said Luigi. "It's the only safe room in the mansion."  
"Yeah, the Foyer," E Gadd agreed. "OK, c'mon miss Peach, let's get going!"  
"OK..." said Peach, who looked absolutely frightened. Within a few seconds, the two were out the door, leaving Luigi and Daisy alone in the Conservatory.

"I hope everyone's alright," Luigi moaned.  
"Me too..." said Daisy.  
Luigi looked at her with a faint smile. "You, um... you play the harp really good."  
Daisy smiled a little back. "Thanks. It's my favorite instrument. It just sounds so beautiful, doesn't it?"  
"Yeah..." said Luigi under his breath. "_...just like you._"  
"Hmm?" Daisy asked.  
"Wha-? I didn't say anything," Luigi stuttered.  
"Oh..." said Daisy, though she gave a suspicious glance.  
A serious look came across Luigi's face. "Listen Daisy, about what happened in the Billiard's Room, I-"  
But Daisy stopped him. "It's OK, Luigi. I was just... a little shaken. That's all..."

After a few seconds of silence, Daisy stepped close to Luigi, and put her arms around him. She then whispered the most poignant of words...

_"Luigi, I'm scared..."_

Luigi put his arms around her in return. "Me too," he replied. "Me too... We all are. But we have to be brave. Our friends are more scared than we are, because they don't have any idea what's happening..."  
"But neither do we," Daisy said, releasing him. "There's still so much we don't know..."  
"That's true," said Luigi. "But answering every little question isn't important right now. We just need to get everyone out of here..."  
"No, Luigi..." said Daisy seriously. She then put her face in close to his and smiled slyly. "Let's leave the rescuing to E Gadd and Peach. WE... are gonna solve this mystery!"

Normally, Luigi would've objected, but something about the way Daisy said it was so convincing.  
"Umm... OK, let's do it!" Luigi exclaimed.  
The two smiled and walked out of the Conservatory into the hallway...

Luigi and Daisy soon reached the Foyer, for as they had said earlier, it was the only safe abode in the mansion.

"OK," said Daisy. "Let's first jot down a list of questions that still need to be answered."  
"Sure," Luigi replied, pulling a crumpled napkin out of his pocket. "Got a pencil?"  
"Got a pen," she announced with a smile. She pulled a blue pen out of her pocket and handed it to him. The two began to discuss the events of the past and present. Of the people, places and things involved. Of virtually everything that could've possibly shared a connection to what was going on...

...And in a matter of minutes, Luigi had written down a list of questions that needed to be answered at all costs...

--

**1. Who freed King Boo from his painting, and why?  
2. How did the ghosts escape from the Poltergust 3000? Did they break free, or did an external force help them escape?  
3. What is King Boo's connection to this mansion? Boolossus' connection to this mansion? King Boo's connection to Boolossus?  
4. Why did King Boo build a replica of this mansion in front of E Gadd's laboratory and capture all of his Portrait Ghosts?  
5. King Boo had tried to lead Mario and I into a trap in his ghost mansion, and he now plans to kill us here, despite the fact that we've never met him. Why? What is his grudge against us?  
6. Why has Mario been acting so strange all night? Where did he go after the Poltergust 3000 broke?  
7. Does the story of Leonard Rioma and Voltaire Mortegarth have any significance?**

_--  
_

Luigi and Daisy studied the list intently. They pondered over what sources they could use to answer these questions.  
"Well," said Luigi, "If we happen to find Mario, I'm sure he could help us answer question 6."  
"And considering these Leonard and Voltaire guys both lived and died in this house," reasoned Daisy, "There has to be some sort of record they left behind to help us answer number 7."  
"As for all the other questions..." began Luigi.  
Daisy looked a little hopeless. "...Hopefully some answers will lead to others."  
"Or, if we could somehow have a chat with King Boo..." Luigi thought.  
Daisy thought a bit. "If we did somehow get that opportunity, we'd best take advantage of it."  
"Alright then Daisy, I say we search the mansion for either Mario or a record of Leonard or Voltaire. Whichever we find first, it doesn't matter."  
"OK, let's go!" Daisy exclaimed. "But first, I kinda wanna check the Ball Room to see if anyone is still there. Don't you?"

Luigi nodded in agreement.

With that, the two headed towards the Ball Room, their minds reeling with possibilities of what may have happened in the mansion's mysterious past, as well as what may have been happening within at that very moment...

* * *

Toad rubbed his head. How he had ended up in this room full of gym equipment was anyone's guess. He remembered that two floating figures had caused an uproar in the Ball Room back at the party, and that a chandelier had fallen and killed someone. And now... he was here. He had been hanging out with Yoshi at the time, but Yoshi was nowhere to be found...

Toad got up and felt an ache in his left foot. He found an exercise bike had been overturned and fallen onto it. After pushing it off, he fought the pain and tried to walk towards the door. "Some party..." he told himself. "What the hell kinda practical joke is Luigi pulling here?" He didn't know why, but something was telling him that this was far more than a prank...

"Y-Yoshi..."

Toad jumped. Was that Yoshi?! No, it couldn't be. Yoshi always sounded so happy, but that sounded... scared.  
"Y-Yoshi...!"  
Toad looked in the corner where he heard the voice. Yoshi sat there, staring at the center of the room at the huge barbell.

"Yoshi! Are you OK!?" Toad asked, running over to him.  
Yoshi knew Toad was there, but he didn't look up at him. His eyes were fixed on the barbell. "Yoooshi..."  
"Wha- what is it? What's wrong?" Toad asked, getting more scared by the second.

He then slowly looked over at the spot where Yoshi was looking...  
"YOSHI!!" Yoshi screamed. He grabbed Toad and hurled them out of the way of the huge barbell that came sailing at them. It narrowly missed, smashing against the wall with a huge_ CRASH!! _  
"What the hell was THAT?!" Toad screamed. He looked in the center of the room, and saw the biggest, buffest man he'd ever seen.  
And he was floating two feet off the ground.  
"Oh my God..." cried Toad. "It's a freakin' ghost!!"

"YOSHI!" Yoshi ran towards the ghost and lashed his tongue out. It went right through him, but Yoshi didn't give up. He dodged a mighty punch from the ghost and proceeded to try and kick him from behind. No luck.  
"Yoshi, get out of there! It's no use! You're just going right through- YAAAGGHHH!!"  
The ghost was coming right at Toad, his muscles bulging and his eyes red like fire. He picked up two dumbbells and chucked them in his direction. Toad closed his eyes, but just as the dumbbells were about to smash his face in, Yoshi's long red tongue lashed onto them and flung them back in the ghost's face. The ghost staggered back in pain. The dumbbells appeared to have hurt him.

"Yeah! Nice one Yoshi!" Toad yelled, but not before screaming again, for the ghost was going for him once more! The ghost reared his fist back for a punch, but at that moment, Toad felt a long, wet tongue wrap around his body. He was then flung up into the air - onto Yoshi's back!  
"YOSHI!" Yoshi cried.  
"Awesome, Yoshi! You're the coolest!"

And so, Yoshi ran around the room, dodging the blows of the crazed ghost. Toad would pick up dumbbells and weights and every piece of equipment he could find to chuck at the ghost and make him hold back, but nothing did.  
However, Toad then noticed something - the only objects the ghost could involuntarily make contact with was the gym equipment. Maybe they could use this to their advantage...  
"Yoshi, can you grab that huge barbell over there?"  
"YOSHI!"

Yoshi lashed out his tongue and wrapped it around the huge barbell that the ghost had thrown earlier. He was waiting for Toad's signal to throw it on top of the ghost. As the ghost drew closer, he stared at Toad through fiery red eyes...  
"Hey sucker!" Toad cried, "Suck on THIS!!"  
With that, he did a stylish jump off of Yoshi's back and kicked a nearby punching bag into the ghost's face! The blow threw the ghost back and onto the floor. "NOW" cried Toad.  
"YOSHI!" With that, Yoshi used every last muscle in his body to fling the barbell up with his tongue and bring it down hard on the ghost's chest. _"OOOGGGFFF!!" _the ghost exclaimed.  
"C'mon Yoshi!" Toad cried. "Let's put an IMPOSSIBLE amount of weight on this thing to hold him down!"  
"YOSHI!"  
The two ran back and forth, grabbing weights from every corner of the Rec Room and putting them on each side of the barbell. Pretty soon, it was loaded to its fullest, and looked as heavy as a frickin' boulder. The ghost struggled to lift it off of his chest, but it didn't even budge.  
"Nice work, man!" said Toad, giving Yoshi a high-five.  
"Yoshi!" Yoshi said, returning the high-five.  
But they then looked back at the ghost, and to their surprise - and horror - he was using all of his ghostly strength to actually LIFT the crazy amount of weight off of himself!  
Toad and Yoshi were so shocked they couldn't say a word. They only watched as the burly spirit lifted the weight off of himself inch by inch...

The ghost would definitely be able to lift the weight off of him enough to escape in a matter of seconds. Yoshi and Toad didn't have time to rummage around for more weight. Without a second thought, Toad leapt up, grabbed one side of the barbell, and struggled to pull it back down. "Grrrrggghhhh!! I won't let you... lift this thing!" he shouted. "Yoshi! Grab the other side and hold him down!!"

Yoshi narrowed his eyes and lashed his tongue out at the other end of the barbell, wrapping it around several times. He then stood at a low angle and tried to pull it down as well. However, their efforts were in vain. Despite how exhausted he looked, the burly phantom continued to push the insane weight load off of his chest. Toad began to feel his feet being lifting off the ground, and Yoshi felt his tongue stretching upward.

"NO WAY!!" Toad screamed. "No WAY this is possible!!"

With a strength unbeknownst to either of the two heroes, the musclebound beast finally lifted the barbell as high as his arms would allow. Goddamn, that must've been over 1000 pounds! Toad and Yoshi knew it - it was hopeless now. They couldn't beat this guy...

Suddenly, the ghost vanished! The barbell fell down with a _THUD!!_,causing Toad to tumble backwards. Yoshi did too, and considering where he'd been standing, it was a miracle he hadn't been crushed underneath the weight. Toad and Yoshi ran up to each other, confused. Where had that scary ghost gone...?

Their question was soon answered when the terrible phantom reappeared right in front of them. They saw his glowing red eyes slowly recede to a soft yellow. Was that a bad thing, Toad wondered? Well, he wasn't taking any chances! "Back off, you demon!" he warned. He held up his index fingers, which were in the shape of a cross. "The power of Christ compels you, bitch!"

"YOSHI!!"

But the bodybuilding spirit merely laughed. _"Naw... don't worry about a thing, fellas," _he said in a casual tone. _"Heck, I oughtta be thanking you for what you did for me!"_

Toad dropped his hands. "Guh-wha...?"

"_You see, my unfinished business in this world was to bench press 1,000 pounds. Once I did that, I'd have gained enough confidence in my spirit to allow me to reach Heaven. Problem is, this gym I ended up getting stuck in only had 900 pounds of weight to put on the barbell! Thanks to you two, you guys managed to bump the total weight up to even MORE than 1,000 pounds! And now, because of that, I can complete the crossing into Heaven. Thanks, you two! Maybe I'll see you up there one day... Good-bye!"_

A mystical white light began to surround the ghost's body. He looked up at the ceiling, as though staring straight through into the sky...

And then, in a flash of blinding light, he vanished just as quickly as he'd come.

Toad and Yoshi stood there for a while.

"What the hell just happened?" asked Toad.

Yoshi shrugged. "Yoshi...?"

Suddenly, the door from the hallway burst open. Toad, thinking it was more ghosts, made a cross with his fingers again. "THE POWER OF CHRIST COMPELS YOU, BITCH!!"

However, when he saw Princess Peach and a funny-looking old man run in, he suddenly stammered with his words. "Uh, umm... I mean... BITCHES!!"

Peach rolled her eyes, though with a smile on her face. As stupid as Toad's welcome was, she was still overjoyed to find he and Yoshi were safe. "Toad! Yoshi! I'm so glad we found you!"

"YOSHI!!" Yoshi exclaimed joyfully.

The old man with Peach stepped forward. "Ah, so you're Toad and Yoshi? It's a pleasure to finally meet you two. Luigi talks about you all the time. Says you're are quite the kart drivers!"

"Heh, thanks old dude," Toad responded. "You know Luigi? How?"

"I'll explain later," the old man assured, "Now I gotta ask - Peach and I heard quite a ruckus going on in here a moment ago. What in blazes were you two doing?"

Toad's eyes lit up. "Oh man, it was the COOLEST thing! Yoshi and I woke up in this gym, right? We had no idea how we even got here from Luigi's party... But yeah, so anyway, this buff-as-hell ghost comes out and start tryin' to beat us up! But he wasn't no match for me and Yoshi! And that right, buddy?"

"Yoshi!" Yoshi shouted, giving Toad another high-five.

The old man raised an eyebrow. "...You two beat up Biff Atlas? Balderdash!"  
"Hellz yeah we did! We was all like... Whoa, wait! _Biff Atlas?? _That's his name? How do you know that? Who ARE you?!"  
"Not important right now. Listen, did Biff Atlas cross over?"  
"Did he _what_?!"

"Did he... disappear in a flash of white light?"

"YOSHI!!"  
"Umm... I think he means 'yes'," Toad reasoned.  
When the old man heard this, he closed his eyes and looked down sadly.

Ignoring the old man, Toad and Yoshi went up to Peach. "Yo Peach," Toad asked, "Why are you roaming around with this wackjob?"  
"That's Professor E Gadd. He's a ghost researcher. Didn't Luigi tell you?"

"No... but how does he know that Biff guy? Does he have something to do with him coming in here and trying to kill us?!"

Peach explained the entire situation as best she could. She tried to recall everything she remembered from when Luigi, Daisy, and E Gadd told her the tale. Yoshi and Toad listened the whole way through.  
"Yoshi..." Yoshi replied when Peach was finished.  
"Damn, that's one tripped out story," said Toad.  
"Tell me about it," Peach groaned. "Right now, we're only worried about saving everyone. Do you know where any of the other guests are?"  
"Your guesses are as good as ours, Princess. Sorry..."  
"YOSHI!!"  
"Hmmm? Oh, hey! Yeah! Yoshi's a great scouter! He can help us find everyone, no prob!"  
"Oh, wonderful!" exclaimed Peach. She was so delighted that she might now be able to find Mario, wherever he had gone...

"Say, Peach," Toad continued, "You said Luigi and Daisy went off on their own, yeah?"  
"Yeah."  
"Heh, well, let's hope Luigi finally works up the guts to tell Daisy how he feels, eh? EH?"

Toad, Yoshi and Peach then went up to E Gadd. "Sorry for being rude," Toad apologized. "We were just kinda freaked out. That's all. Yoshi and I will be happy to help any way we can."  
"YOSHI!!"  
"I'm delighted to hear that," E Gadd said with a grin. "Heck, I should be the one apologizing. I haven't even formally introduced myself! My name is Professor E Gadd. It's a pleasure to meet you, Toad and Yoshi." He shook hands with both of them as he introduced himself.

"Well met, Mr Gadd," Toad said. "So, about this whole 'crossing over' business... can you explain it to us? You know, so we can help all the evil ghosts in the mansion pass on?"  
E Gadd was hesitant, but agreed. "...OK, we'll talk on the way. We need to get going and get everyone out of here ASAP. As for Luigi and Daisy, I hope they're safe..."

* * *

Luigi and Daisy wondered where they might be able to find Mario, or a record left behind by either Leonard Rioma or Voltaire Mortegarth.

"Well, you explored King Boo's ghost mansion," Daisy said to Luigi. "Any ideas?"  
Luigi thought a bit. Where had he first met King Boo...?  
The Storage Room!  
"Yeah. I remember in King Boo's mansion, I first let the Boos free from the Storage Room. King Boo, too. That's where I first saw him."  
"OK, let's check it out!" said Daisy.  
"Oh, and as I think you know already, it's connected to the Ball Room, so we can check and see if anyone's left there on the way."  
"OK..."

The two walked to the Ball Room door and opened it. They peered inside.  
The room was empty.  
The two large circular pads on the ground where spinning slowly, and an ethereal green cloud was floating around the room.  
"The Floating Whirlindas..." Luigi said.  
"Oh, yeah, you told me about them. The dancing couple?"  
"Yeah. Looks like they scared everyone out..."  
"Wait, Luigi, what happened over there?!"

In the middle of one of the spinning tiles, there lay the remains of a fallen chandelier. Luigi had a bad feeling that the Floating Whirlindas had made sure someone was crushed beneath it...  
Ignoring the green mist that floated nearby, Luigi ran up to the chandelier's remains. Daisy followed behind closely. He inspected it, praying that no one was underneath...  
Until he saw a small, pudgy white hand outstretched from beneath the rubble.  
"Mallow..." Luigi said sadly. "I hardly knew you, man..."

Daisy then spotted someone huddled in the corner. It looked like a little wooden man dressed in a blue wizard suit. He stared through wide, teary eyes at the hand reaching out from under the smashed chandelier. "Hello," Daisy said, approaching slowly. "Don't worry, everything's gonna be OK..."  
The man said nothing, his eyes still wide, and shook his head slowly.  
Luigi walked up. "Geno! Are you OK? What happened here?!"  
Geno trembled a bit, but managed to speak. "That... cloud. Those two dancers... They... killed Mallow."  
Luigi looked at the floating cloud caused by the dancing couple, still shifting around gracefully. He didn't have time to explain the entire story. "Geno, listen to me. I need for you to go to the Foyer and stay there. Princess Peach and my friend Professor E Gadd will eventually meet up with you. Can you do that for me?"

Geno seemed as though he heard what Luigi said, but was still in shock over the sight before him. "Mallow..."  
"Mallow's gone. There's nothing we can do for him now. I'm sorry. We need you to get to the Foyer as fast as possible so nothing like this will happen again."  
Geno looked at him in disbelief, but realized Luigi obviously knew what was going on more than he did. Without another word, he ran out the door towards the Foyer.  
"I hope he's OK..." said Daisy.  
"Me too," said Luigi, "But let's hurry over to the Storage Room before the Whirlindas do anything rash."

And with that, the two got up and quickly ran through the Storage Room door.

Once inside, Luigi instinctively felt around for the light switch, but stopped when he couldn't find it. It was official, he realized - King Boo had made all the light switches in the whole mansion vanish. "Crap," he muttered.  
"Luigi, what's that?" Daisy pointed to a button on the wall. Luigi recalled a similar scene from King Boo's fake mansion. Without any hesitation, he pressed the button. The west wall suddenly jerked, shook, and slowly moved all the way back, revealing the hidden second half of the room. Luigi saw the grate on the floor and the 'Danger' poster that he remembered. He ripped the poster off the wall. Beneath, as he suspected, was another button. He pressed it, and the grate flew open. Luigi half expected a mob of angry Boos to fly out like he remembered, but nothing did. In fact, he began to wonder if anything was down there...

Daisy was curious too. She stepped close, and peered into the blackness. "I can't see anything, but I feel a draft. There's definitely a room down there..."  
Luigi began to feel scared. "Daisy, be careful."  
But Daisy kneeled down and stepped in closer.  
"Daisy, no!"  
But at that moment, an invisible hand grabbed Daisy's dress and pulled her headfirst into the hole!  
_"LUIGIIII...!!"_

"DAISY!!" Luigi screamed. Without any thoughts, Luigi leapt into the hole, unknowing how far into the dark he would fall...

To Luigi's surprise, he found he only fell about twenty feet or so before landing on what felt like an old mattress. Daisy was there too, but he couldn't see her. "Daisy, where are you?"  
"I'm right here."  
"Where?"  
"I think I'm right next to you."  
Luigi felt around. "But it's so dark. I can't see yo-"  
But he stopped when he felt his hand touch Daisy's cheek. It made his heart skip. "Oh, heh. There you are."

"Luigi... where are we? You've been in here before, right? I mean, in the ghost mansion?"  
"No, I have no clue what this place is. It's too dark. I think we should wait for our eyes to adjust before exploring..."  
"OK. And umm... Luigi, you can take your hand off my cheek now."  
Luigi pulled his hand off, embarrassed. "Oh, sorry!"

The two sat in silence until they were soon able to make out each other's faces in the dark. "Ready to carry on?" Luigi asked.  
"After you!" Daisy answered.  
They got off the old mattress and began to look around. It appeared to be a secret room of some sort. All Luigi could really discern in the dark was a table with two books on it.  
Daisy had no idea where they were either. She looked around the room in wonder and fear. She wandered off in a different direction than Luigi, wondering what she might find. However, she didn't seem to be heading anywhere special. Even in the dark, she could see she was just heading towards a dead end...

Daisy was about to turn around when something caught her eye on the wall next to her. She turned her head slowly, and saw something strange...

On the wall was what appeared to be a shadow of some sort. A shadow that existed even in this darkness. Daisy examined it with a fearful expression, and found it to be in the shape of a man...

And where the eyes of this 'man' should've been, she saw two faint dots. They seemed to beckon her, and sink into her mind...

Daisy was just about to call out to Luigi, but nearly screamed when she saw the shadow suddenly flit along the wall at great speed. She followed it with her eyes as it flew towards the dead end, but was confused when she saw it simply disappear into the wall at the end of it.

Was... something over there? Had the shadowy apparition wanted her to follow...?

Hesitantly, Daisy walked towards the wall that the shadow had sunk into. Upon close inspection, it was clearly different from the rest of the room. Most of the walls were made of grey stone, but this wall was made of small, dry, cracked bricks.

Daisy reached out to touch with it with a shaky hand...

And when she did, she gave a light push.

The wall seemed to crumble a slight amount.

Filed to the brim with anticipation and dread, Daisy called out. "Luigi!! Come quick!!"

Luigi came running at top speed around the corner, stumbling a bit in the dark. He found Daisy alone in this little dead end and ran to her. "Daisy! What's wrong? Are you OK?!"

"I'm fine," she assured him, "But look at this. I think I found something..." She pointed at the brick wall before them. Luigi looked at it, confused. '"Yeah? What about it?"

Daisy didn't want to tell Luigi about the shadowy figure she had seen, lest it might scare him off. "It feels weak. Maybe there's something behind it?"

Luigi scratched his hat. "Maybe, but what could be back there?"

"Treasure?" Daisy asked with a shrug.

Luigi shrugged too, and decided it may be worth it to find out. He felt the wall and gave it a few little shoves. It did seem to crackle and crumble a lot. He reached up for a brick that stuck out a bit and pulled it right out. Several bricks broke loose as well, creating a good-sized hole. Using this hole, Luigi grabbed the edges of it with both hands and tugged hard. This caused practically the entire brick wall to come crashing down.

And when it did, Luigi and Daisy found themselves looking upon a sickening sight.

Two skeletons lay cramped together in this tiny inlet. Their bones were old, crusty, and covered in dust. However, the positions these two skeletons rested in was hauntingly intriguing...

The first skeleton sat upright against the wall. It wore a nice suit and a top hat. The bones were littered with rusting jewelry.  
The other was on its knees with its hands on the floor, as though bowing down to the other in respect. It wore rather shabby clothes, though it's body, too, was littered with jewelry...  
Luigi shuttered at the sight. He didn't do so well looking at _fake_ skeletons, let alone _real_ ones.  
Daisy was more intrigued than nervous. The positions these people had died in... what on earth was their story? She took a step into the dusty space to take a closer look at the mysterious scene before them. Luigi gathered his courage and stepped in too.

Upon closer inspection, the gold necklace of the upright skeleton had something written on it. Luigi and Daisy walked around the bowing skeleton and put their heads in close to see what it said...

**V.M.**

**Estates**

"V.M.?" Daisy asked.  
"Voltaire Mortegarth..." Luigi said quietly.

Daisy gasped. "Do you really think-?!" She then looked down at the bowing skeleton. "So then, this must be..."  
"Leonard Rioma," Luigi said. "Voltaire's not-so-loyal servant."  
"Sure looks loyal to me..." said Daisy, observing the scene.

Luigi noticed a trowel in Leonard's hand, and a bucket of long-since dried cement next to Leonard's bones, along with a few spare bricks.  
"Leonard walled himself in here with Voltaire's dead body..."  
Daisy recalled the story E Gadd had told them about Voltaire and Leonard. It didn't seem to fit with the scene before them, but then again...  
Where could they get answers?  
They had a feeling that all the answers lay within the pages of the books on the table...

Leaving the two skeletons at peace for the time being, Luigi and Daisy walked out of the dead end back into the main room. There they saw the two books lying on the old table in the center of the room. Upon reaching the table, they split and walked around the table in opposite directions, each moving towards a different book.

Daisy picked up the hard, black book in front of her and read the title...

_**Diary of Voltaire Mortegarth**_

Luigi then picked up his brown, leather-bound book and blew the dust off the cover...

_**Leonard Rioma's Journal  
**__  
_Luigi and Daisy looked at one another, the diaries of two tortured souls in their hands. They knew that by reading these diaries, they could hopefully solve this mystery altogether.  
They only hoped the two undoubtedly restless spirits would permit this...  
After some slight hesitation, Luigi and Daisy each opened their respective journals and began to read...

* * *

Peach, Toad and Yoshi followed E Gadd into the Foyer, where E Gadd began his lecture on ghosts and crossing over without delay...

"First, in order to explain the rules of death, I must explain the cycle of life. Everyone essentially has a ghost inside them. It's your very soul. However, when a person dies, their spirit leaves their now useless body and is judged based on their last life whether to go to Heaven or Hell, in which case they are sent to their destination for a predetermined amount of time, usually a period of several hundred years, until their spirit is permitted to enter a newborn body and start over. It's an endless cycle. It's believed this cycle is God's attempt to make a perfect world of peace and harmony without his direct aid. Not even I know exactly what will happen when this goal is reached, but my guess is it won't happen for a very long time, if it ever happens at all... In any case, sometimes a spirit has some very important unfinished business from their life that could ultimately help change their destination. If it may help the spirit avoid the depths of Hell and reach Heaven, then the so-named 'Great Arbiter' may agree to allow the spirit to remain on earth as long as they need to finish this business. These spirits without bodies are what we call ghosts. If by chance this business if finished, the ghost will immediately pass on to Heaven..."

Peach chimed in. "But Professor, Luigi said that he was troubled by the fact that there were some ghosts that looked like humans, yet there were also Boos... You know, that don't look human at all..."

"Ah yes," reasoned E Gadd, "The differences between ghosts and Boos. A ghost is, well, I already explained that! But Boos... Boos are those rare spirits that have no significant amount of good or bad records from the life they just finished. They're essentially ghosts, but with no unfinished business, and with no 'tilt' as to whether or not to go to Heaven or Hell. The Arbiter may then decide to let these spirits remain on earth so that they may voluntarily tilt their judgment by doing either good or bad deeds. However, as a sort of punishment for having such an uneventful life, their physical appearance is morphed into the hideous white balls we all know and fear. The only way a Boo can cross over is to do enough good or bad deeds to determine whether to go up or down, and they must visit a holy site of any sort, where they will be judged yet again... However, since Boos are the spirits of truly lazy people, they often feel as though they don't deserve such punishment because they never really did anything bad. Therefore, most of them take advantage of their horrible appearance and merely use it to do evil and mischievous things to let out their anger. So you see, the expression 'Boo!', normally used to startle people, is actually derived from the name for these unique spirits, not the other way around. Haha! Just a little fun fact there. Anyways, all they have to do is avoid getting near any holy sites and they can continue their devilish acts forever..."

"So... is that King Boo's story?" Toad asked.  
"No..." said E Gadd. "King Boo has a FAR more intriguing story..."

E Gadd cleared his throat and continued. "...Now then, I'm not sure what his name was when he was alive, so I'll simply refer to him as 'X'. So, you see, when X died, the Great Arbiter's judgment was to immediately send him to Hell, because he had been an evil man. However, when Satan came to claim his soul, X fooled Satan by luring him to the sight of a Crucifix, for as you may know, Satan is powerless in the presence of the Crucifix. X's spirit wandered on earth for several more years, each time fooling Satan in order to avoid going to Hell. The Arbiter finally caught on, and angry with X, he decided to have him judged by St Peter and Satan themselves - the guardians of their own afterworld. St Peter couldn't let X into Heaven, of course, because X had been an evil man. But Satan was so angry at X for having fooled him so many times that he wanted nothing to do with him. X was a lost soul, rejected from both Heaven and Hell... Even the Great Arbiter wasn't sure what to do with him. And so, he transformed X into a Boo... an especially hideous Boo with red eyes and a blue tongue. This Boo's especially frightful appearance gained him the respect of Boos elsewhere - so much so that he eventually realized his recognition and crowned himself as King among Boos. So, as you can probably tell, King Boo isn't really a king. In fact, one might argue that he isn't even really a Boo, but..."  
E Gadd stopped. He couldn't anymore.

"But Professor," said Peach. "If you know all this, then why did you trap all the ghosts inside paintings and display them in a gallery?! You of all people should be the one _helping_ them cross over!!"  
"Now you listen here, miss!" E Gadd shot back angrily, "You don't understand how difficult it is to have two such different passions. Painting and studying ghosts... Neither one on their own could get me any money. The only way was to combine them somehow..."  
"That's weak!" Toad yelled. "You tampered with the laws of crossing over just for MONEY?!"  
"YOSHI!!" Yoshi sounded angry too.

E Gadd couldn't argue back. His desire for money when he was young was ultimately the reason why everyone was in danger at that very moment.  
"I didn't want them to cross over..." he said at last, looking down. "But now I know that they have to..."  
He looked up. "C'mon guys! Let's help these spirits find peace!"

After a small celebration, they noticed a wooden man wearing a blue wizard suit stalk in slowly...


	2. Part 2

* * *

Although feeling a bit reluctant, Daisy opened up the book in her hands and began to read...

**_--_**

_December 1, 1935  
My 16 servants have just finished building my glorious new mansion. I spent nearly 100,000,000G on it, but it's worth it! I now have a mansion and 16 servants that do everything for me! However, there is one servant I have that stands out among the rest. His name is Leonard Rioma. He seems to have a pretty independent spirit for a labor worker. The other 15 aren't much special. In fact, they're all appallingly dim-witted by themselves, but when they work together, they can do pretty much anything, like one big man! How perfect - excellent workers that are too dumb to know how much I rip them off as slaves! The only one I have to keep an eye on is Rioma. He looks at me with a rather cold eye... It's probably nothing, though. I have nothing to fear of some lowlife servant of mine. For now, I eagerly enter my new mansion. The humongous green 'V' in the top center is just calling to me!_

_December 7, 1935  
The holidays are approaching fast. My dear lady Cilla pesters me for a ring she's had her eye on. I want to buy it for her, but at the moment, all my savings must go towards keeping my mansion in prime condition, as well as presents for myself. Some say I'm a bit greedy... though the ones that do wake up the next morning to find their bank accounts empty! Ah... such is the joy of being a banker... Though, I must say, I thought I saw that Leonard Rioma fellow giving my Cilla a rather flirtatious eye. If that man so much as lays a finger on her, I swear he will pay..._

_December 15, 1935  
Leonard Rioma entered The Study, my office, today. He claimed he was willing to do extra work and have some rations reduced in order to get more pay. Who does that damn, dirty Italian immigrant think he is?! Well, he seemed pretty desperate, so I humored him. I plan to increase his work load and reduce his rations by 50, but pay him only 30 more. He won't even notice, the filthy fool! Immigrants are so stupid that they are willing to do absolutely anything for an extra 22 cents! It's idiotic! Besides, what the hell does a labor man like him need extra wages for?! It's not like he can ever plan on buying anything valuable..._

_December 20, 1935  
I was polishing off some of my porcelain china when I caught a glimpse of my dear Cilla out in the snow speaking with another man. Leonard, I bet, the snooping maggot. That man has some nerve trying to swoon my girl. Does he not realize that I own him, and that I can ultimately decide whether he lives or dies?! I'm not worried, though. Cilla is likely laughing in his face about how poor and dirty he is! My darling Cilla could never fall for scum like Leonard! And besides, once I get that ring for her, she'll be glued to me! Speaking of which, I'd better plan on getting that thing soon..._

_December 24, 1935; Christmas Eve  
I am so angry right now, diary. I went to the jewelers to get that ring, but it had already been sold! Someone beat me to it! I swear, if the person who'd already bought that ring was right in front of me, I don't know WHAT I'd do! I told my 16 servants that their work load would be increased and that they'd have no days off, not even for Christmas. If I can't enjoy a good holiday, they shouldn't be able to either. I was genuinely happy for not even a month, and now the world sees fit to punish me for it. It makes me so ANGRY! I suppose I have no choice but to look for another present for Cilla. She will be disappointed, I'm sure, but she will forgive, for she will still love me all the same._

_December 25, 1935; Christmas Day  
Words cannot express my rage today, diary! I went to Cilla with a small tin ring I had bought this morning. I planned to tell her why I didn't get her the ring she had wanted, but when I walked in, she was wearing that very ring on her finger! Furious, I asked her where she'd gotten it, and she explained that Leonard had bought it for her with his extra money and proposed! LEONARD!! Without another word, I ran to my office to let out my anger, but I saw Leonard sitting in my chair like he owned the place! He told me that he and Cilla had been secretly in love for a year, but he could never afford a ring with which to propose. He became a labor man for me with hopes that he could make the money needed for that ring. Cilla had then used all of my money to have my position as banker abdicated - only to give it to Leonard! He then spilled the worst news of all - HE HAD GAINED CUSTODY OF MY MANSION AS WELL!! I am standing outside in the lonely winter snow right now. My mansion... now in the hands of my traitorous employee and my ex-love... The green 'V', now a green 'L'... I cannot stand it! I must go!_

_December 31, 1935; New Year's Eve  
I'm so cold and weak I can barely write. All I have now are the tuxedo and top hat I stand in, along with a few precious garments that I may need to sell soon. My 15 servants send me just enough support to survive. I'm glad they still remain loyal to me. Ever since Cilla and that bastard Leonard stole my money and my mansion, I've been living in the lobby of a motel. I feel the clerk is growing angry with me that I never leave, but his anger cannot compare to mine..._

_January 1, 1936; New Year's Day_

_I am standing on the porch of my former mansion. I have rung the doorbell, and I hear the footsteps of Leonard's shiny shoes approaching the door. I hold a sharp dagger in my hands. This is my final moment, journal...  
Leonard, I will make you pay. Whether I'm to go to Heaven or Hell, the Arbiter will have to wait. I will see to it that my revenge is carried out.  
Yes, Leonard Rioma, I will make you pay._

**_--_**

**  
**A few drops of blood dotted the bottom of the page and had soaked into a few pages below. The rest of the diary was blank. That was all there was.

Daisy closed the book and set it on the table. Her heart was still heavy from the story she had just read. She looked across the table at Luigi, who was still busy reading Leonard's journal. She waited patiently for him to finish. There was so much to tell...

* * *

The wooden man in blue walked into the Foyer slowly and sorrowfully. He appeared so stricken with grief that he might collapse. Yoshi ran up to him and helped him regain his balance.

"Geno?" Peach and Toad asked at the same time.  
Geno looked up and nodded. "Yeah..."  
"Where've you been, man? What happened?!" Toad cried.  
"Mallow... the ghosts... killed Mallow..."

"Oh dear..." said Peach.  
"Oh my goodness," uttered E Gadd. "The ghosts have actually killed someone now? This is not good..."  
"Mallow..." Geno muttered. "Why...?"  
"Oh, we have to hurry and find everybody!" Peach cried. "Especially Mario! Oh, I'm so worried!"  
"No, don't be worried!" E Gadd assured. "I happen to know that anyone who dies unwillingly at the hands of a ghost can be returned to their body if the ghost that killed them crosses over!"  
"What?" Toad asked. "That makes no sense..."  
"Of course it does!" said E Gadd. "Dying at the hands of the dead... Normally, ghosts can NEVER kill a human being, but another unexpected side-effect of my machine... ghosts filled with rage after being released from my machine have the ability to kill, but if we can help that ghost cross over, then the ones that have been killed by that ghost can have their soul returned to their body!"  
"How the hell do you know all this?!" Toad wondered.  
"Well, once I started using my machine to trap ghosts, the Great Arbiter gave me a hell of a lecture! Haha!"

"Damn, you REALLY messed with the laws of chaos, didn't you?"  
"Regrettably, yes..."

Geno then looked up. "So... Mallow can still survive?"  
"Yes," said E Gadd. "Mallow is undoubtedly a ghost now, who's unfinished business is to wait for one to help him return to his body. We're the only ones who can, and we can do so by helping the ghosts who killed him cross over..."  
"The dancing ghosts!" Geno cried. "It was the dancing ghosts that killed him!"  
"The Floating Whirlindas?" E Gadd asked.  
"Yeah, whatever! C'mon! Let's go get 'em!!"  
Geno made a mad dash for the door, but Yoshi wrestled him to the ground.  
"Geno, calm yourself!" E Gadd ordered. "There are other guests that need our help. We've gotta search for ones that are alive before trying to help ones that are already dead!"

Geno stopped, sighed, and settled down. "OK," he said. "What should we do, then?"  
"We just have to search," E Gadd replied.  
"Is anyone else safe besides us five?" Geno asked.  
"Just Luigi and Daisy," said Peach.  
"Well then, where are they?"  
E Gadd looked away. "We don't know..."  
Geno closed his eyes and shook his head. "Alright, fine. Where do we look first?"  
"Yo doc," Toad said, "Are there any religious sites in this house, by any chance? You know, if King Boo's really a Boo, then maybe we can use that site to make him cross over?"

E Gadd thought a bit, then snapped his fingers. "The Secret Altar!" he exclaimed.  
"Yoshi?" Yoshi wondered.  
"Yes, of course! Luigi visited that room in King Boo's mansion! It was where King Boo resided. That shrine wasn't real, so nothing happened to him there, but if such a room truly exists in _this_ mansion... Yes, I recall hearing that Voltaire, despite how mean and greedy he was, was still very religious. He thanked God for his great wealth."  
"And where is this Secret Altar?" Peach asked.  
"The basement! Let's go!"  
"Alright!" Geno exclaimed.

As the party headed downstairs, Geno asked, "Say Professor, who the heck is Voltaire?"  
"Oh, that's a long story. I'll tell you all on the way..."

By the time E Gadd had finished telling them all the tale, they were outside the Secret Altar. Toad tried to open the door, but it was locked. "Hey, it won't open!" he complained. All five of them examined the door, seeing if there was some sort of secret mechanism to opening it.  
"Yoshi!" Yoshi spotted something on the wall next to the door. It looked like a keyboard mounted onto the wall, but much bigger and more primitive, and contained only the letters of the alphabet.

"Must be a sort of code that opens the door..." said E Gadd.  
Etched into the stone wall, above the letter buttons, was a poem:

**My first appears in the middle of time****  
My second has low and show as a rhyme**

**My third is the very beginning of none  
My fourth is the sign that earth has begun  
My fifth is the end of eternity  
My whole - the thing that brings most joy to me**

Everyone read the poem at their own pace, but no one could decipher what it meant. They only thing they seemed to agree upon was that it told what the code was, and that Voltaire wrote it to help him remember it. But, what could the code be?

Toad then jumped. "I got it!" He ran up to the keyboard and proceeded to punch in a word. Nothing happened.  
"That obviously wasn't right," Peach said. "What did you type in?"  
"Cheez!"  
"Cheese? But I think the poem calls for a 5-letter word..."

"Well duh! I know THAT! I'm not stupid!"

"Umm... but cheese has 6 letters."  
"I know! That's why I put a 'Z'."  
"But why _cheese_!? That doesn't even fit the riddle!"  
"Oh, well... I really only read the last line."  
"So?"  
"Everyone loves cheez!"

E Gadd went up and smacked Toad upside the head. "You dang little chumpnut! Use that massive head of yours!"  
Geno then snapped his fingers. "Oh, I know it! I know the code!" Everyone watched as Geno ran up and inserted a five-letter code...

**M-O-N-E-Y****  
**

They heard the unlocking of a lock and saw the door swing freely open.  
"Of course! Money!" E Gadd exclaimed. "Yessir, only Bill Gates' greed could have compared to old Mortegarth's..."  
"Yoshi!" Yoshi jumped and ran headlong into the Secret Altar.

"C'mon, let's check it out," said E Gadd.  
"OK..." said Peach nervously. She slowly walked in, followed by Geno, followed by Toad.

The Secret Altar. It was so dark inside, for every candle in the room was out, but the gold trimmed walls still shimmered without the aid of light. In the middle of the room was a raised bowl of what looked liked moldy water.  
"Must've been a dish of holy water," E Gadd reasoned.  
"Hey doc?" asked Toad, "If this Voltaire guy was religious enough to build an altar of pure gold, then why did the Great Arbiter want him to go to Hell?"  
E Gadd scratched his chin and raised an eyebrow. "Well, let's see... he was evil, greedy, and racist. And he only became religious because he thanked God for his mountains of money, so... yeah, methinks he deserved to go to Hell."

"Oh..." said Toad thoughtfully.

Peach and Yoshi were looking around when Yoshi spotted something. "Yoshi," he said, pointing.

Peach looked, and saw a message painted on the wall. However, it was so dark she couldn't quite read it. "Umm... does anyone have a light?"  
"I do," said Geno. He pulled out a lighter and lit the three candles of a nearby candelabra. He handed it to Peach, who held it up to read the message.  
By now, everyone in the room had gathered to see what was written...  
And sprawled across the wall, written in red ink...

_**THANK YOU, ELVIN, FOR LIFE AFTER DEATH**_

And painted below was a large red crucifix.

Everyone read the message three or four times over, wondering exactly what it meant. It almost scared them. Had Voltaire written this? But... what did it mean? And who was 'Elvin'?  
Everyone stared wide-eyed, except E Gadd, who was sulking away, sweating. His eyes shifted back and forth.

Toad then turned around and looked at E Gadd, who was suspiciously sneaking away. "Hey Doc?... What does the 'E' in your name stand for...?"  
When E Gadd was asked that, he seemed to fold under the pressure. He continued to back up, though knowing he wasn't going anywhere.  
"Well, what does it stand for?!" Toad persisted.

E Gadd finally cracked. "It stands for _Elvin_, OK?!"

Everyone gasped and looked back on the wall at the name in the message...  
THANK YOU, ELVIN, FOR LIFE AFTER DEATH

Peach looked back at E Gadd, who was covering his face with his hand. "Professor? Is Voltaire's ghost somewhere in the mansion? And did YOU somehow allow Voltaire to remain on earth even after he died?"

"I... I don't know," E Gadd stammered, completely bewildered by the message in red that beared his name. "I don't understand. Why would Voltaire write such a thing...??"

"Did you know Voltaire when he was alive?" Geno asked forcefully. "Did you??"  
Everyone waited impatiently for an answer while E Gadd wept in silence, until at last, he finally spoke...

"...I've been living in a shack not too far from here my entire life. Only about a twenty-minute walk. Ten if you run, I guess. Anyway, this was back around the mid-1930's or so. 1935-36, something like that. I was a lad of about nine years when I saw Voltaire's mansion being finished. I used to sit by the site and watch the construction all day for entertainment cuz, well, we didn't have much money, and plus the TV wasn't even invented yet, o' course. Didn't have any of them GameCubes or nothin'... Anyhoo, once the mansion was finished, I saw how rich Voltaire was, and I figured maybe I could do some work for him in order to get some money for my family. It was around December at the time, so every time Voltaire went out for a walk in the snow, I'd run up and ask 'Excuse me Mr. Voltaire, mind if I do a bit of work for you in exchange for a few cents?' Voltaire, being the old fart he was, sneered at my requests. However, I never stopped trying to ask him. One day, though, sometime between Christmas and New Year's, he came up to me. He knew I'd been studying the paranormal (Yup, I began studying ghosts at the ripe age of 7!), so he asked me to explain to him everything I knew about death and the afterlife. I told him just about all I knew up to that point. You know, 'bout Heaven, Hell, God, Satan, The Crucifix, ghosts, unfinished business, The Great Arbiter... the whole ten yards. The next day, he loaded my little shack with money, sayin' I should use it for all the ghost research equipment I could handle! I used it to build my Lab and the Ghost Portrificationizer. My family encouraged me to continue my work, and that's what I've been doing for the past 70 years. Sad thing is, a few days later, I learned that Voltaire had committed suicide on the mansion's porch on New Year's Day. Therefore, sometime near the end of my career of capturing ghosts for my gallery, I revisited this old place, hoping to find Voltaire's ghost. Never did find him. Only Boolossus, the last Portrait Ghost I ever caught - before Luigi came along, anyway. And shortly thereafter, King Boo's haunted replica of this mansion appeared next to my dear little shack, as though in vengeful response to what I'd done. I've never been able to understand any of it. But now I'm rambling..."

Once E Gadd was finished, Geno asked, "Professor... did you know Leonard, too?"

"Never met the man, but Voltaire did say his name a few times when I spoke to him. He sounded as though he hated the man with a passion..."  
Peach looked at the message on the wall, and the Crucifix painted below it. "You mentioned something about Satan and the Crucifix. They were among the things you explained to Voltaire concerning the rules of death and the afterlife, right?"  
"That's right," said E Gadd.  
"Hmm... Where have I heard those terms recently...?"

* * *

Luigi opened the leather-bound book in his hands and began to read. Nothing was dated, so when all of this happened was anyone's guess...

**_--_**

_Hello jurnal. Im Leonard Rioma. You are the only thing I bring with me from Italy. We go to America! Im sorry for writing in bad english, jurnal, but if Im to live in America, I have to spek english. Don't worry, I learn eventualy!_

_I live in America only one week and I meet beutiful girl! She called Cilla. She American girl. Very pretty and funy. She say she like me becus of my cute stilted english. I spend much time with her._

_I lived in America for many months now, and still only find low-paying jobs. Its been a long time since I wrote. Sorry, been so busy with Cilla and finding work and I forgot about you, journal. I start writing again, thogh. I will find a job soon. By the way, Cilla is teaching me to speak english better. You notice? Ha ha!_

_Great day, journal! Cilla found me a good job! I'm going to be a servant for a man named Voltaire Mortegarth. He has much money. Me and fifteen other men are helping to build him a mancion. I wonder how Cilla got me the job? She talked to Voltaire? I see them now and Voltaire looks at Cilla with a lovy eye. I hope she just talked to him..._

_The mancion is done! Que bella! I also get to live in it! Master Voltaire seems a little bit too happy with his money. It seems its all he loves. He also loves Cilla. That's not fair. I've known Cilla longer than him. I hope she doesn't love him too..._

_I talked to Cilla today. She told me she got my job for me becuase she 'sedused' Voltaire. That's a word I never heard before. I will check a diccionary..._

_I'm a little mad how Cilla got me the job, but she loves me, and I love her. I can't be mad. But I'm worried. I'm scared that Voltaire loves Cilla too much. I don't think he's supposed to know that Cilla seduced him... Does that mean he thinks Cilla loves him? Cilla doesn't love him... does she? I hope no._

_Christmas is coming soon. I arrived in America in the center of January, so I missed it last time. This will be my first Christmas in America! I shopped in a jewel store and saw a pretty ring. I can't buy it, though. Don't have much money. I should ask Voltaire for more money._

_I asked Voltaire to pay me more if I work more. He seemed angry. I'm angry at him too. He doesn't love anything except his precios money and my precios Cilla. He thinks he can take everything from his servants. The other fifteen are too stupid to know, but I know. He's a bad man. But when I buy that ring for Cilla, Voltaire will know there's no way he can have her!_

_It's Christmas! I feel like a little boy back in Italy again! I gave the ring to Cilla, and she loves it. Voltaire will be very jealous! But I don't care about that. All I care is that Cilla is happy. But aye! Cilla gave me so much money for Christmas! She told me to sit in Master Violtaire's chair, and says the mansion is now mine! I'm so happy, but also kind of confused. And worried. What will happen to Voltaire...?_

_Voltaire came in and said he had wanted to buy that ring for Cilla. I said sorry. I didn't know. He seemed very mad that I was in his chair. I told him the mansion was mine now, and he screamed and ran away! I think Cilla stole his money and used it to give the mansion deed to me. It's nice, but it also makes me feel very gilty. I think I'll let the fifteen servants go free. And I'm worried about Voltaire. Where will he go?_

_My third night in my new mansion. I heard a scary noise in the basement. I went down to check, and saw a gold church room I had never seen befor. I found no one, but I saw a message on the wall in red. I don't know what it means, but I think its something bad. There was a cross drawn under it, too. The paint was wet..._

_Very scary day. I was celebrating New Year's with Cilla when the doorbell rang. Cilla went to open the door, and I heard her scream. I ran there and saw poor Voltaire on the porch. He was dead. His wrists were cut with a knife. He... committed the suicide? But why? Because he was angry at me? Cilla gave me his mansion and his money. I didn't mean to take it from him. I didn't mean to make him sad. Poor Voltaire... I bring him inside before anyone sees. But where I put him?_

_It's been about three months since Voltaire was found dead. I can still see him in my head. His wrists so bloody and his face so angry. I placed his body in the basement room where he used to write in his own diary sometimes, right next to the golden church room. I found the diary in his pocket, too, and I read it. I understand everything now. Poor man... He was mean and cruel, but he didn't deserve what happened to him. It's all my fault. I'm sorry Voltaire. I hope you find peace in your life after death._

_I hear noises in the downstairs church room much lately, but I find no one there. What is happening?_

_My second year in the mansion, and I couldn't be happier. Cilla is pregnant! I'm going to be a daddy! Can you believe it? And yet, I read this journal over again and it reminds me of that terrible day two years ago. I had mostly forgotten about Voltaire until now, which is odd, since his body is still down in the basement room, and this reminder makes me feel very sad and guilty again. However, I'm sure wherever he's gone to now, he's forgiven me. My focus now is my baby. He'll be born in only just 8 months! I can't wait!_

_I walk around the mansion now and I see and hear many strange things. Shadows, whispers... I feel like someone watches me all the time. I try to keep my mind on Cilla and my baby to make me happy, yet I still can't make this fear go away. What is wrong with me?_

_I just had a terrible dream, journal... I dreamed I was lying on the porch of my mansion, but I couldn't hear anything or move. All I could do was see... I saw Voltaire. Cilla was on the ground in front of him, crying. I wanted to help her, but I couldn't. Voltaire took a knife and sliced her stomach open, then pulled out the baby. He looked at me, holding my baby by the feet. He said something to me, but I still could not hear. He then held the knife to my baby's throat. I woke up before it ended. I understand now. Voltaire... he is not at peace. He is angry with me for stealing his money, and his mansion, and his love, and his entire life. I am sorry to him, but he does not forgive me. He wants to kill my baby. I won't let him. I will tell Cilla tomorrow and we will escape this place._

_Cilla and I are now living in a small mushroom village in the outskirts of Brooklyn, and we are very happy. Guess what? We also are the parents of a healthy baby boy! He is so beautiful... He looks just like me! We haven't found a good name for him yet, but I will let you know when we do. Also, Voltaire does not haunt us anymore. I hope he has forgiven, or at least forgotten, us by now. The whole thing still bothers me much, but I cannot keep looking into the past. I look into the future now. Down the road of fatherhood. I will protect my son and make sure he becomes a big, strong man!_

_It has been nearly 40 years, journal. I am standing here in the basement of my old mansion, gazing upon the bones of my old boss, Voltaire Mortegarth. I had long since gotten over the troubles I've shared with this man, and for a while there, I was sure I had forgotten all about them. However, about a month ago, I received frightening news. My son, who's wife just found out she is pregnant with a second son, came up to me and said he'd had a terrible dream. He dreamed that a horrible white ghost threatened to kill their first son, along with the unborn baby. I understood right away. With a good-bye to Cilla and my family, I traveled the great distance back here to this mansion..._

_Voltaire, you've threatened my own son, and now you threaten my grandchildren. What do you want from me? I've apologized countless times in my prayers for what Cilla and I did to you so many years ago, but you just won't stop... Well, if that's the case, then I shall make you stop. I will make you stop, even if it means giving my own life. I will do this for my family... Cilla, my son, my grandchildren... I will give my life so that they may have theirs. Voltaire, leave my family alone._

_**--**_

That was all there was in Leonard's journal. Luigi carefully closed it and set it back down on the table_. _When he looked up, he found Daisy had already finished reading hers. They stood in silence for a very long time. These records of the past were... disturbing, to say the least.

Eventually, though, Luigi and Daisy finally got to sharing what each other had read in their respective diaries. Daisy told Voltaire's tale to the best of her memory, and Luigi tried his best to recite every last detail of Leonard's story. The exchange of information was enlightening, and yet very strange indeed.

"That's such a sad story..." Daisy moaned in a depressed tone. She looked over at the scene with the two skeletons. "Seems like Leonard walled himself in with Voltaire's body, thinking it would protect his family from him. Poor man... "

"Yeah, it sure seems that way," said Luigi. "But you know? I couldn't help but notice a few... similarities between Leonard and myself..."  
"Really?" Daisy asked, looking up at him curiously. "Like what?"  
Luigi opened his mouth to speak, but his mind suddenly went to Mario. He was so worried about him. And he wondered about E Gadd as well. And Peach. Had they found anyone? Were they safe?  
"Daisy, we'll talk about this later. Right now we have to find E Gadd and Peach."  
Daisy didn't argue. She understood. "OK, but... how do we get out of here?"

Daisy had a good point. They had dropped from the hole in the Storage Room. They wouldn't be able to crawl back up out of it. They searched the room from dark corner to dark corner, but found no doors.

"We're trapped..." said Luigi.  
"No!" said Daisy. "We can't be!"  
"I know it's hard to admit," Luigi consoled her, "But we have to face the truth sometimes..."  
"No, I mean we CAN'T be trapped! Don't you remember? Voltaire obviously came down here before! There has to be some way in and out of here!"  
Luigi remembered reading in Leonard's journal that Voltaire always came down to this room to write in his own diary. "Hey, that's true..." Luigi said. It made him blush a little that Daisy was able to think rationally even in such dangerous situations.

_"Whew... that's quite a woman," _he told himself.

Daisy had a strange feeling about the inlet where Leonard had walled himself in with Voltaire's body. Behind Voltaire's skeleton, the wooden wall surrounded by stone looked... out of place...  
"C'mere Luigi! I bet there's something in here..."  
Luigi was reluctant, but he, too, was curious about the alcove with the two bodies. It didn't seem natural.  
The two worked their way around the skeletons, careful not to disturb them. They felt around on the walls, seeing if there was a sort of mechanism that opened a hidden door somewhere. They didn't find anything. Luigi became so frustrated that he slammed his fist on the wooden wall above Voltaire's head.

* * *

"Professor, in your explanation of the afterlife to Voltaire, did you happen to tell him about the way spirits become Boos? Or how King Boo came to be?"

"Well I knew hardly anything about Boos at the time. I finished that research only recently! And the legend of King Boo came after Voltaire's time. It only started to become well-known in the last few decades."

"Did you happen to tell him about Satan's weakness? Ya know, with the Crucifix?"

"Oh, probably. But it was so long ago..."

"So you have absolutely NO idea why Voltaire would paint this message on the wall??"

"Yoshi??"

"That's what I'm telling you! I'm just as confused as anybody else! Stop your incessant inquiring! GAH!!"  
Before the discussion in the Secret Altar could continue any more, a loud _BANG!_ from behind the mirror on the east wall made everyone jump.  
"What was that?!" Geno asked.  
"It's King Boo!" Toad cried. "He's gonna KILL US ALL!"  
"YOSHIIIII!"

Peach watched E Gadd carefully walk towards the mirror. Peach didn't stop him. She could tell he knew what he was doing. E Gadd swallowed as he walked closer to the mirror, step by step. His head and hands were sweaty with terror, but he didn't stop. He pressed his hands against the cool glass, staring at his own reflection, and yelled, "WHO'S BACK THERE!?"

From beyond the wall, E Gadd waited for a response.  
_"...P-professor? Professor, is that you?"_  
E Gadd's eyes lit up. "Luigi?! Is that you, m' boy?!"  
"_Yes! YES! It's me! Daisy's here too!"_

_"HI PROFESSOR!" _Daisy called out sweetly.

E Gadd put a hand over his heart. "Oh, I'm so happy to hear you two are OK!"  
"_Professor, you have NO idea how much we have to tell you! We've found out so much in here!"_  
"Oh, OK! Let me just see how to get out of- Wait a minute... Just where are you two?! You're not trapped inside the wall, are you?!"  
"_Of course not! We're in a secret room!" _By now, everyone in the Secret Altar had gathered around to hear the conversation.

"Well I'll be damned!"_  
_"_Listen, there's gotta be a hidden door or something that connects this room to the Secret Altar..."_  
"Nonsense! I bet it's right here! Just gotta lift this mirror and..."  
E Gadd tried to lift the mirror off the wall, but it wouldn't budge. Everyone went up to help.

"Hey Luigi, slam the mirror again!" E Gadd ordered.

Luigi heard E Gadd's command and slammed the back of the mirror with his fist. As he did, he thought he heard something come loose. He slammed again... and again... and again...  
"Umm, Luigi..." Daisy said.  
"Yeah?" asked Luigi, rubbing his aching hand.  
Daisy pointed to a small circular object on the wall near Voltaire's head.  
A doorknob.  
"Oh," he blushed. He reached for it and turned it.

E Gadd and the gang got ready for one last heave, and as they pulled with all their might...  
_WHOOSH!_  
The mirror swung off the wall like a door! Everyone flew back and landed in a heap!

Luigi and Daisy walked through the secret mirror door into the Altar. They were so surprised and happy to see not only E Gadd and Peach, but Toad, Yoshi and Geno as well!

Yoshi leapt up and immediately dashed at Luigi in joy. "YOSHI!!" He embraced the Luigi in his tiny arms.

"Yeah, great to see you too, big guy!" Luigi replied.  
Daisy went down and helped everyone up. Once Toad was back on his feet, he saw Voltaire's skeleton had stumbled into the room by accident. "AAAGGHHHH!! Skeleton! It's gonna KILL US ALL!!"

"Aw, put a sock in it, ya pizza topping!" Geno exclaimed, slapping Toad in the back of the head.

"Ow!" Cried Toad. "Why's everyone hitting me!? I'm not THAT dumb..."  
By now, everyone was up and talking about how happy they were to see each other.

"OK everyone, enough chat!" Daisy finally ordered. "Luigi and I have to tell what we've found out about this mansion's history."  
"Yeah," said Peach. "We have info to tell, too."  
"I take it you haven't seen the message on the wall..." E Gadd said sadly, pointing at it. Luigi and Daisy read it with wide eyes. There was much discussion to be done...  
Little did they know, a secret party guest was at the front door, ready to bring their night to an end once and for all...

* * *

Bowser rubbed his claws together and chuckled to himself as he walked up the steps onto the porch of Luigi's mansion. He'd recently bought himself a radio signal trapper that allowed him to tap into people's phone calls. He usually did it for a laugh, but when he heard a phone call between Mario and Toad concerning a party at Luigi's new mansion, he knew he had to take the opportunity to crash the bash!

Kammy Koopa flew in on her broom behind him. "Slow down, your Ugliness! No need to rush! This party's probably gonna last all night!"  
"Quiet Kammy! We don't know that! The only parties that last all night are the ones where people drink! Mario and Luigi are too 'family friendly' to know how to throw a _good_ party!"

"But doesn't alcohol make you sleepy? The last party we threw, you were so fast asleep from alcohol that you wet the couch!"  
"Wha-?! Bu-!! SHUT UP!!"  
"Hehe... sorry."  
"Well you'd better be sorry, you little piece of baggage! Now let's just ring the doorbell and-"  
"But wait, your Vileness! Listen... It doesn't sound like there's much of a party going on in there..."

Bowser pressed his ear against the door and listened. Kammy was right. There was dead silence behind the door.  
"Yeah, you're right! What's up with that?! Where's the party?! All I hear is silence!"  
"Umm... how can you hear silence?"  
"Shut up, Kammy. Look! All the lights are off, too!"  
"Hmm, maybe the party's over..."  
"DAMMIT! I knew we should've gotten here sooner!"  
"Well, you know, we could've gotten here an hour earlier if you hadn't made us get off the express bus..."  
"I HAD TO GO TO THE BATHROOM!!"  
"OK, sorry... Listen, when all the guests are sleeping, that's still a great opportunity to do some great party tricks."  
"Like what?"  
"Like, you know, filling their hands with whipped cream and tickling their face... like they did to you in the Mario Party 6 commercial."  
"Oh yeah! Uh... HEY!"  
"Hehe... well, there's still lots of ideas."  
"Yeah, like putting their hands in each others' pants and taking pictures!"  
"Umm... no."  
"OK fine. Well, let's break in first so we can-"

But before Bowser said anything more, the front door swung open!  
"AGGGHHH! What the hell?!" Bowser screamed, scrambling backwards and falling down the steps. Kammy herself almost fell of her broom. "Who's there! What are you doing up so late?! It's nearly midnight!"  
A shadowy figure stood in the doorway. A large white Boo floated out behind it. It's eyes gleamed red and it wore a golden crown...  
"K-King Boo?!" Bowser cried.

King Boo glared down upon Bowser, his eyes gleaming in anger. His mouth and teeth stretched out into a wide grin.

"King Boo...?" Bowser stammered, "What are you doing?!"  
King Boo raised his arms and let out a shriek. Bowser felt a force tugging on the horn on the left side of his head. "What the hell?!" He suddenly was picked up into the air by an invisible force. The horn on his head was set down on a hook above the mansion doorway. He was left hanging there by his horn. "HEY! This isn't funny! Let me down!"  
Kammy was lifted off of her broom. The broom magically shredded up into sawdust and blew away in the wind. She was lifted by her dress, and was hung by it on Bowser's other horn. The two struggled to free themselves, but realized they were in a pretty lame situation.

The mysterious figure stepped out from the doorway to see what King Boo had done. They both looked up and laughed. Bowser cursed to himself and tried to get down. Kammy was trying to make out who this mysterious man with King Boo was. Through the darkness, he looked almost... familiar...

King Boo then floated up to Bowser's face. "_Bowser..._" he said in a deep, cracking voice. "_You are the most pathetic monster to ever walk this earth! I don't know why I ever dressed up like you to scare the Mario Brothers! They're not afraid of you! You're just a nuisance that they have to save a princess from once in a while!_"  
Bowser lowered his eyebrows. "Yeah, right! I bet YOU were a monster when you were alive, too!"  
King Boo chuckled. "_You have NO idea..._"  
King Boo floated back down with his shady partner and looked back up. "_It's a shame we had to meet like this, Bowser. My friend and I were just on our way to do some important business when we just happened to run into you! Have fun hanging up there, ya oafish moron! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!_"  
With that, King Boo and his mysterious partner ran off.

"Curse that King Boo..." Bowser growled.  
"Bowser, did you happen to see who King Boo was with?" Kammy questioned.  
"No, why?"  
"I have a feeling I've seen that person before..."

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Secret Altar, everyone was about to share each others' research when they heard a commotion outside. They could hear a sort of argument or quarrel, even from so far within the mansion. Luigi wondered if perhaps King Boo was involved...  
"Guys, we'll definitely talk soon. But first, let's see what all the noise is about."

Luigi ran ahead, followed by Daisy, followed by Yoshi, Geno, Peach, E Gadd, and finally Toad. They followed Luigi up the basement steps, through the hall, into the Foyer and out the front door...  
But they saw no one.  
"Hello?" Luigi called timidly.  
_"HellOOOOOOO!!_" boomed an angry voice from above.

Everyone jumped and looked up. Above them lay the most hilarious sight many of them had ever seen. Bowser's left horn was supended by a hook jutting out from above the mansion doorway, and from his right horn hung Kammy Koopa by her dress. Bowser hung there with his arms crossed and an annoyed look on his face. The sight was so outrageous that everyone immediately began to laugh their asses off.  
Bowser sneered. "Yeah, yeah! Laugh it up, ya bunch o' fuggin' asswipes!"  
"Help us down this instant!" Kammy ordered.  
"Why should we?" asked Toad. "We kinda like you up there!"  
"Yeah," said Daisy. "And what were you doing here in the first place, tubby!?"  
Bowser grumbled. "Well, I... just so happened to hear about a party going on here, so Kammy and I decided to come and, well... have some fun."  
"Looks like you found it!" Geno cracked.  
"YOSHI!!" Yoshi and Geno leaned on each other in crazed laughter.

Luigi eventually stopped laughing and became suspicious. "But Bowser, Kammy... who put you up there?"  
Kammy shook angrily. "That ignorant, scowling King Boo fellow! Why if he were here right now, I'd..."  
"KING BOO?!" E Gadd exclaimed.  
"Uhh... yeah. King Boo," Bowser replied. "You know, King of all Boos...?"  
"Ugh! I KNOW who King Boo is! But... he was here?!"

"Well duh! I just said that!!"  
"Where did he go?!" By now, everyone had stopped laughing and were listening intently.

"How the hell should I know? And why the hell should I care?"  
"Because he's trying to kill everyone in the mansion, and I have a feeling his primary targets are the Mario Bros!"

Bowser snarled, looking down at Luigi. "What?! NO! That's MY job!! No stupid Boo is gonna take that from me! Now get us down! NOW!!"  
Yoshi shrugged and lashed is tongue out, wrapping it around the hook which Bowser's horn was hanging from. Bowser grabbed the tongue, hoisting his horn off the hook. Then, using the hook as a pulley, Yoshi unraveled his tongue slowly and lowered the Bowser and Kammy to the ground. Of course, at about two feet off the ground, Yoshi let his tongue so slack, causing Bowser to land hard on his ass and Kammy to slip off his horn and fall to the ground with a thump. Again, everyone laughed.  
"Cheeky little lizard..." Bowser muttered.  
"Yoshi!!"

"Alright then Bowser!" E Gadd said, "I think we may be able to help each other out. You tell us what you know about King Boo's whereabouts, and we'll explain the whole situation to you. We need to discuss the facts anyway, so having you here will only help."  
"HELP?! Ah man... I swore to myself I'd never help the good guys! This isn't FAIR!"  
"Well, hey!" Luigi said, "If it means you'll be able to be the main bad guy again without any competition, why not?"  
"He has a point, your Wretchedness," Kammy pointed out.  
Bowser closed his eyes and growled. "Fine..."

"Very well then!" E Gadd exclaimed. "Now let's get down to business! At the moment, we have three main sources of information... Bowser and Kammy, you're the only ones who know where King Boo has headed. Peach, Toad, Yoshi, Geno and I are another, considering what we've been able to uncover..."  
Daisy proudly stood next to Luigi and took his hand. Luigi smiled.  
"Ah yes, Luigi and Daisy. You're perhaps our most important source! Now, let's begin our discussion! We just need one of us to begin first. Would anyone like to volunteer?"

Daisy stepped forward. "I think we can get this meeting started."  
Luigi stepped by her side. "Yeah. We've found out loads of stuff about the mansion's past. Plus, we even wrote down a list of fundamental questions regarding this whole mystery! I bet we can use it to steer this discussion..."  
Luigi pulled out the napkin which he'd written the questions and began to read off the list...

--

**1. Who freed King Boo from his painting, and why?  
2. How did the ghosts escape from the Poltergust 3000? Did they break free by themselves, or did an external force help them escape?  
3. What is King Boo's connection to this mansion? Boolossus' connection to this mansion? King Boo's connection to Boolossus?  
4. Why did King Boo build a replica of this mansion in front of E Gadd's laboratory and capture all of his Portrait Ghosts?  
5. King Boo had tried to lead Mario and I into a trap in his ghost mansion, and he now plans to kill us here, despite the fact that we've never met him. Why? What is his grudge against us?  
6. Why had Mario been acting so strange all night? Where did he go after the Poltergust 3000 broke?  
7. Does the story of Leonard Rioma and Voltaire Mortegarth have any significance?**

--

Luigi read them over to the whole group. Everyone listened and tried their best to remember them and put some pieces together.

"OK," Daisy announced, "Now that that's settled, let's begin! Luigi and I happened to stumble across some diaries left behind by both Voltaire and Leonard..."  
E Gadd suddenly became intrigued. "Really?! What did they say?"  
"Well, I read Voltaire's diary, and Luigi read Leonard's. Let's see if we can remember what they said..."

Daisy first recited all that she remembered from Voltaire's diary. She got all the key points in, at least. Luigi had a little more trouble, but he recited Leonard's journal as best he could. They both also described the scene with Leonard and Voltaire's skeletons, which were sealed within the alcove. Once they were finished, everyone began to talk and discuss amongst themselves.  
"Oh, that's such a sad story..." Peach moaned.  
"Yo, so this Leonard guy stole Voltaire's money, mansion AND girl! Cool!" Toad cried.  
"Hmm..." thought E Gadd. "So, it's clear that Voltaire's goal in the afterlife is to end the Rioma family chain. Voltaire was so angry with Leonard that he killed himself because he believed he would have more luck killing Leonard's son if he was a ghost."  
"Why didn't he just kill Leonard?" Geno wondered.  
"Well, either solution would have ended the Rioma family," E Gadd reasoned. "I'm supposing that Voltaire just wanted Leonard to suffer, which would explain why Voltaire also threatened Leonard's grandchildren. Guess that's what made Leonard wall himself in with Voltaire's body, thinking it would protect his family. How sad..."  
"I know..." said Luigi. "But about those fifteen servants other than Leonard... they were weak by themselves, so they work as one... sounds an awful lot like Boolossus to me."  
"Yeah, I was thinking of that. It would explain why I captured Boolossus in this mansion, so that's part of question #2 solved. Though, it still doesn't explain Boolossus's connection to King Boo, or King Boo's connection to this house..."

"Oh, and about that last part of Voltaire's diary," said Peach, "It said or something. Professor, again - didn't you say you told Voltaire about Satan's being powerless in the sight of the Crucifix?"  
"I think so..." said E Gadd, puzzled.  
"And you also explained in the story about King Boo that he used the power of the Crucifix to evade the devil, which ended up getting him turned into a hideous Boo?!"  
E Gadd now found himself thinking hard about the connection. He scratched his chin thoughtfully

Luigi then thought of something. "Yo, E Gadd! We gotta talk about questions #4 and #5! You know, stuff that happened at King Boo's haunted mansion!"  
"Hmm, yes. I've been thinking about that ever since it happened. For question #4, I believe King Boo did this for a number or reasons. For one, I captured Boolossus, his supposed 'royal servant' or 'servants' as the case may be, and he wanted revenge on me. Also, he must've captured my Portrait Ghosts in order to make me suffer, knowing that my pride and money was gone, and also maybe as a sort of setup for what's happening now. Remember how I told you that ghosts that are trapped within paintings twice become filled with unspeakable rage? Think about it a bit and you'll see where I'm coming from..."  
"But Professor! That still doesn't answer question #5! Why did King Boo lure me and Mario into his trap?! What does he have against us!?"  
"Hmm... Now that I can't explain..." E Gadd said regrettably.  
Luigi sighed and looked down.

Geno had been thinking a bit and said, "Hey, Professor? Do you know anything about Leonard Rioma's son or his grandsons?"  
"Why do you ask?" E Gadd questioned.  
"Just tell me," he said.  
"Oh, OK. Well, I know nothing of his grandsons, but over years of studying this mansion hoping to find Voltaire's ghost, Leonard's son was brought up a few times..."  
"What did it say about him?" Luigi asked  
"Nothing much. I just remember that he changed his last name in order to confuse Voltaire's vengeful spirit for as long as possible."  
"What did he change it to?"  
"I don't know. All I've heard is that he anagrammed the letter's of his last name..."

Luigi thought about that. 'Rioma...'  
He shifted the letters over, putting the last letter in front, just to see what that would do.  
'Ariom...'  
That didn't do much, so he did it one more time...

'_Mario._'

Luigi was stricken right through the heart. His own name was Luigi Mario. And his brother... Mario Mario! It all made sense now.

Leonard was their grandfather! :O

"Luigi, you OK?" Daisy asked. "You look all spacey..."  
"He was my grandfather..." Luigi muttered.  
"What?!" Everyone asked.  
"LEONARD WAS MY GRANDFATHER!!"

Everyone shrieked. No one was even sure what to say!  
"But...that makes no sense!" said E Gadd, "King Boo is the one trying to kill you, not Voltaire..."  
Luigi exploded. "For God's sake, Professor! Haven't you figured it out?! King Boo is trying to kill me, and Voltaire swore to end the Rioma/Mario family bloodline! Can't you put two and two together?!"  
E Gadd didn't even blink.  
"And the message in the Altar!" Peach screamed. "Thanking you for life after death? And The Crucifix in the Secret Altar? Your story about King Boo using the sight of the Crucifix to avoid Satan...?!"  
E Gadd still didn't get it.  
"And Boolossus!" Toad cried. "Why would Boolossus be so loyal to King Boo? Because the fifteen Boos that made him were King Boo's servants when he was alive! And Voltaire's fifteen servants... RING A BELL?!"  
"Hmm..." E Gadd thought.  
"Jesus! Even I'VE figured it out already! Haven't you!?" Bowser roared.  
"N-no..." E Gadd stammered.  
Everyone finally took a deep breath and screamed,

"**VOLTAIRE MORTEGARTH **_**IS KING BOO!!**_"  
"YOSHIIIIIII!!"

E Gadd scratched his chin for several minutes, then finally jumped. "Oh! I get it now!"  
Everyone sighed, exasperated.

"Well," said Daisy, taking the list. "We've made some real breakthroughs today! We've successfully answered questions #3, #4, #5, and #7, arguably the most important ones of all. As for the others..."  
"We need to find Mario," said Peach, sadly.

Luigi looked sad as well. "I know, Peach. I'm worried about him too. We all are..."  
Everyone nodded.  
"I'm not," said Bowser.  
"Shut up, tubby! And besides, we haven't heard yet what YOU know yet!"  
"Look, all I know is that I came here to crash your party, and that King Boo and some other bastard put me and Kammy up there and ran off into the woods. That's it."  
E Gadd became suspicious. "Someone was with King Boo? Who?"  
"We don't know," said Kammy. "But even in the dark, he - or she, for all I know - looked familiar..."

Luigi thought a bit, then announced. "Everyone, I have a feeling I know where King Boo and his shady comrade are going. I'm going to find and stop them from doing what I fear they are going to do... anyone who wishes to join me, do so. Anyone who doesn't should stay and continue to search for the missing party guests. There shouldn't be too many left..."  
"Just Wario, Waluigi, Donkey Kong and Toadsworth, I think," thought Daisy.  
"Right then!" Luigi shouted, "WHO'S WITH ME?!"

Luigi stood at the foot of the steps for a long time looking up at everyone on the porch, but no one volunteered to help. "Well, isn't anyone gonna come with me?"  
Again, no one said a word. Luigi felt so hopeless. "C'mon guys! I can't do this on my own... please, I gotta avenge my grandpa... and help my brother..."

After a while of silence, Daisy slowly made her way through the crowd and stepped the off the porch. She took Luigi's side and looked him in the eyes.  
"I'll never leave your side," she said quietly. Luigi tried to hide it, but he smiled.  
E Gadd stood up and scurried down the steps. "When have I ever not trusted you, Luigi?" He stood at Luigi's other side.Everyone else appeared too scared to go. Luigi couldn't blame them. Facing off against the King of all Boos wasn't going to be an easy task. Most certainly not. Deadly, perhaps.  
So Luigi begged no more. "Alright then! We three will go after King Boo. Peach, Toad, Yoshi, Geno, Kammy, Bowser... please look for our friends, and let them know where we've gone, in case we don't come back..."

E Gadd looked at Bowser, who was sitting and twiddling with his thumbs. "Except YOU, Bowser! You're coming with us!"  
Bowser looked up, surprised. "WHA-?! But, I don't-!!"  
"You know the general direction that King Boo and his partner ran off in. You're the only one who vaguely knows where we have to go!"  
Bowser frowned and looked around. Luigi and Daisy had their arms crossed. Everyone on the porch looked at him as though expecting him to go.  
"UUUUURRRGGGHH!! FINE!! I'll go... but don't get used to me helping you, ya fruits!" With that, Bowser walked down and reluctantly took his place behind Luigi.

Kammy suddenly jumped up. "Hey, I have an idea! How about I fly back and forth between the two teams and transfer information!"  
"Hey... that's not a bad idea!" Daisy thought.  
"But Kammy!" Bowser said, "Didn't King Boo shred your broom into sawdust? You can't fly without your broom!"  
"I'VE got a broom!!" Toad exclaimed. Everyone looked at Toad, who was holding a broom.

Everyone looked at him stupidly. "Toad... Where the hell did you get that??" Luigi asked.

Toad looked at the broom in his hand and scratched his head. "I don't know..."

By this point, Luigi figured there wasn't a whole lot left to talk about. Their first priority was to get to their destination as fast as possible.  
And Luigi was almost positive that he already knew where it was. If they ran, they could get there in about ten minutes...

"OK, I think he went kinda in that direction..." Bowser said, pointing into the woods.

"It's OK!" Luigi cried, "I know where King Boo and his partner are!!"  
"What? But how?" E Gadd asked.  
"Just trust me!" Luigi said.  
Neither Bowser nor E Gadd seemed to buy it.  
But Daisy put a hand on Luigi's arm. "I trust you, Luigi..."  
Daisy's encouragement gave Luigi the will to sprint all the way there! "Just follow me everybody!"  
Luigi began to run through the thicket of trees. Daisy followed behind him.  
E Gadd and Bowser looked at one another and shrugged. They then both began to run, leaving the mansion behind...

* * *

The four ran wildly through the trees. Swirling clouds peeked through the gnarled branches overhead. The moon shone through the clouds, eerily illuminating the forest. Branches and twigs scratched Luigi's face, but he couldn't stop running. Bowser figured this was the way King Boo may have gone. E Gadd noticed the route Luigi was leading them was awfully familiar. And Daisy immediately knew where Luigi was taking them...

Luigi had been sprinting for ten minutes straight. He was so exhausted he thought his lungs would collapse. However, just as his legs couldn't run another step, he broke through the final barrier of trees...  
And appeared in the empty lot he had been hoping to find.  
Daisy burst through not a second later. Luigi was utterly surprised to see that Daisy had been able to keep up the entire time. In fact, she seemed even less tired than him! She bent over to take a breath, then looked up. Once she saw where they were, she nodded. "I knew it," she muttered. "Here..."  
"I'm afraid so," said Luigi.

Bowser's massive frame squeezed through the trees a couple seconds later. He didn't seem at all tired, but he was curious about there they were.  
"What the hell is this place?"  
"Shut up!" Luigi and Daisy ordered at the same time.  
E Gadd finally scrambled through the trees soon afterward. He looked as though he was ready to die of exhaustion, but he managed to stay on his feet. He walked up to Luigi's side and looked ahead.  
"What in the... Luigi! Here?!"

The four stared at the empty lot before them... and across the lot, was E Gadd's house.  
And at the front door of the house was King Boo, chatting with his mysterious partner in evil.  
"What on Earth are those brutes planning to do to my house?!" E Gadd said gruffly.  
"Nothing," said Luigi, "But I think I have a feeling I know what they're going to do..."  
"What is it?" Daisy asked, concerned.  
"...I don't want to jump to conclusions, so..."  
"Well c'mon Luigi! You want to give them the benefit of the doubt when they are certainly going to do something disastrous?! You're mad!!"  
"C'mon guys, just trust me..."  
"Why should we trust you?!" Bowser scoffed. "Like my grandmama always said, 'Never trust anyone dressed in plumber's clothes who claims he's an adventurer'..."  
Luigi crossed his arms. "Well I found King Boo, didn't I?"  
No one could find any way to argue with that.

"OK," said Daisy. "What do you propose we do, then?"  
"Well," Luigi thought, "Let's wait until they go inside, and-"  
"Inside?!" E Gadd asked. "Do they plan to do something with my machine?!"  
"Please, let me finish. But, yeah, they plan on doing something with your machine. Let's follow them in, and before they do their thing, we jump out, take them by surprise, and unmask the identity of King Boo's partner. From there... E Gadd, do you have anything that can trap ghosts?"  
"Other than my busted Poltergust 3000? No..."

Luigi realized then that what he was planning might not work. He closed his eyes and thought deeply. Daisy didn't know why, but she had a feeling Luigi was planning something dangerous. And he knew it.

Luigi finally looked up. "OK, same plan, but this time... we wait until _after_ they do their thing in order to unmask the partner's identity."  
E Gadd was shocked. "What?! But that makes no sense? Why wait until after?"  
"It's a risky idea, but we have to reveal ourselves after this happens. Trust me..."  
"OK," said E Gadd, "I have no idea what you're planning, but I trust you."  
"Me too..." said Daisy. "...always."  
"Meh," Bowser groaned, "If it'll get me on the top of the villain chart again, I guess I'll say it. I... trust you."  
"Cool," Luigi smiled.  
"...But I don't think I'll be able to fit in that tiny door," Bowser complained.  
"That's OK. You can stay outside and watch for Kammy. She should be coming soon with information. Just... be prepared for a surprise, OK?"  
Bowser didn't like the sound of that, but he agreed.  
"Alright!" Luigi said. "Let's just wait until King Boo and his buddy go inside..."

The four hid behind the bushes and watched. King Boo and his clearly human partner were discussing something. Luigi wondered... Could this person also be the one who freed King Boo from his painting in the first place?  
Eventually, the two villians looked around to see if the coast was clear, then slowly walked into he house and closed the door.  
"OK, let's go!" Luigi ordered.  
All four of them moved swiftly across the clearing and in front of the house. Bowser took his post there. "I'll be waiting for that 'surprise'," Bowser said.

"OK, let's go on in, guys..." Luigi told Daisy and E Gadd. He slowly opened the door and began to walk into the dark Labratory. Daisy followed close behind, followed by E Gadd. E Gadd carefully shut the door. They could all hear King Boo cackling away downstairs. E Gadd promptly began to descend the ladder. Luigi followed him down, and then Daisy. The three walked through the Training Room, and stopped outside the door to the Ghost Portrificationizer Room.  
All three listened...

"_Goodness, are you finished yet?!_" they heard King Boo call impatiently.  
"Just a minute," a hauntingly familiar voice answered.  
The sound of clanging bolts and screws were heard, as though someone was altering the controls. They then heard a noise like a V10 engine revving up. The machine was on.  
"_Yes!! Let's do this!_" King Boo yelled evilly.  
"OK, just go on in and enjoy the ride..." the voice answered.

E Gadd gasped and Daisy put her hand over her mouth. They now understood what was happening...  
King Boo was going to put himself through the machine for a second time, and then back out again, sacrificing his intelligence for pure, unspeakable rage. Who knew what horrible things he would become capable of...?  
Luigi, Daisy, and E Gadd listened through the door at the clanging machine. They heard King Boo's wicked laughter soon fade as the sound of swirling fluid filled the air.  
"Oh my God, we have to stop him!" cried E Gadd. He made a mad dash for the doorknob, but Luigi grabbed his arm and wrestled him back. "No! We have to wait until King Boo is turned into a painting and revived again!"  
"Are you CRAZY?!" Daisy yelled over the roar of the machinery. "I knew you had a dangerous idea, but this... this makes no sense!! What are you trying to DO to us?!"  
"She's right!" E Gadd jumped up and pinned Luigi against the wall. "Are you trying to get us KILLED?! King Boo is already more powerful than any of the other Portrait Ghosts that are already filled with rage! Do you have ANY idea how catastrophic it could be if we let this happen!?"  
E Gadd looked absolutely crazed. Daisy's eyes were welling up with tears. She wondered if Luigi could really be trusted.

But Luigi knew what he was thinking. He didn't know what deadly powers King Boo might acquire from this, but he still was hopeful. How could he convince them to believe that he was perfectly sane?! "Please!" He yelled, "I know my idea sounds crazy, but its better than just waiting around to die. We can put an end to this! We can put an end to King Boo's reign on Earth! Isn't that worth trusting me for?!"

E Gadd's expression didn't change for a long time, but he then finally loosened his grip and let Luigi go. "OK, we'll see what you're thinking..."  
"But Luigi," Daisy said, "Once King Boo is back in his painting, can't we just stop the process there? That way, King Boo will be trapped in his painting for good! And we won't have to do whatever it is you're planning to do!"  
"No," Luigi said. "The laws of life and death have been tampered with enough. It's time to send King Boo to where he belongs..."  
"OK..." Daisy wiped her tears away and took Luigi's hand. "I believe you."

The three stood against the door once again. Luigi and Daisy held each others' hands tightly, and E Gadd had his sweaty palm on the doorknob, ready to bust in.  
They waited for the moment the machine started to go in reverse...

"OK, King Boo! Ready to come back to the real world?!"  
_WWWWRRRGGGHHHHHH!!  
_  
"NOW!" Luigi shouted.  
E Gadd threw open the door and ran in. Luigi and Daisy ran in together. Inside, they saw King Boo's portrait riding backwards through the portrait press. Luigi immediately saw King Boo's partner at the controls...

"YOU!!" He ran and leapt at the person in fury.

It all seemed to happen in slow motion...  
Luigi sailed through the air, red lights flashing from the machine all over, the room illuminated one second, dark the next...  
He cursed at the person, who was so surprised that they turned around.  
The lights went dark for a second...  
Then flashed red again.  
And as Luigi looked at the face before him, a wave of mixed emotions flew through him.  
And just as Luigi trounced the evildoer to the ground, he called out the name...

_"M-A-R-I-O!!"_

Luigi slammed Mario to the ground and pinned him down. Mario stared up at him in utter surprise. "L-luigi?"  
Luigi was so enraged he didn't even know what to say. "MARIO?! What the HELL are you doing?!" he yelled over the roar of the machinery.  
Mario narrowed his eyes and threw his fist into Luigi's face, knocking him up and backwards into the controls. Mario ran in for another blow, but Luigi moved, causing Mario to punch the control panel. Luigi ran around and shoved Mario against it.

"MARIO?!" Daisy cried in disbelief, her voice quivering.  
"King Boo's already going into the ghost liquidator!" E Gadd called out in alarm. "Mario, do you realize what you've DONE?!"

Luigi stared into Mario's twisted face. He could feel the hot tears rising in the back of his eyes. "...Why!?"  
"Why?" Mario asked. "_WHY_?! I'll tell you why! All my life I've been saving princesses and killing turtles and saving kingdoms, and I knew that one day there would be a quest for one brother to save the other. But why was it YOU who had to save ME?! Huh?! I've never gotten the chance to free YOU from danger! Why did the first 'brother saves brother' mission have to have YOU as the hero?!"  
Luigi listened to Mario's explanation, absolutely stunned. "Are you fuggin' KIDDING ME!? That's it?! That's the whole reason you wanted to have me KILLED?!"  
"Killed?! No, not _killed_! Just, I don't know, a revenge opportunity!"  
Luigi shoved Mario onto the control panel again. "You have no IDEA, do you?! King Boo was once a man named Voltaire Mortegarth who used to live in my mansion! Our grandpa Leonard Rioma seized all of Voltaire's money and his mansion, and caused Voltaire to kill himself! Since then, Voltaire returned to earth as King Boo and has vowed to put an end to the Rioma family bloodline, which is now the _MARIO_ family chain! Don't you see?! He's not going to spare you just because you helped him! He's going to kill us both, because that's his unfinished business as a ghost!!"  
Mario was shocked by the tale he'd just heard. He suddenly felt so guilty for having put Luigi in such danger. "I... I'm sorry. I..."  
"Yeah, save the apologies for later, Bro! Right now, we have work to do! And besides, your reason for wanting revenge on me is total bullshit!! C'mon Mario! After twenty years of watching you do all the princess-saving and kingdom-restoring, I finally get to be the star... And who do I have to save?! My BROTHER!! My BROTHER who's already a hundred times as popular as I'll ever be! How do you think I felt?! But you don't see ME trying to take revenge upon you, DO YOU!?"  
Mario was taken aback. He didn't know what to say.  
"I hate to break up the reunion," E Gadd said in a worried voice, "But... _King Boo's coming_!!"

The sound of the machinery suddenly drowned out until the room was silent except for a faint warning siren. Luigi and Mario took their eyes off each other and watched as a bulging object squeezed through the pipe from the ghost liquidizer into the vacuum slot. A spine-tingling cackle came from within...

"Luigi...?" Daisy said in a petrified voice.  
"It'd be good if we could hear your plan now, sonny!" E Gadd yelled.

"Maybe I should talk to him..." Mario said.  
"No Mario," Luigi whispered. "He won't listen. His intelligence is gone. He only knows but one thing... kill us all."  
"Then what do we do?" Daisy asked, her heart pounding in her throat.  
Luigi stared at the vacuum slot fearfully. "...Run..."  
"But Luigi, I still think I can talk to him!" Mario protested. "I set him free! He'll understand!"  
"No Mario... we have to run... now!"

"I'm TELLING you, Luigi, let me talk to him! Why wouldn't he listen to the guy who freed him from that stupid painting?!"  
Luigi kept his grip on Mario's arm. "...Because he can't listen, Mario. I'm telling you, he's not going to show mercy just because you saved him!"  
"Luigi!!" Daisy screamed.

Luigi and Mario looked at the vacuum slot...  
A white mist began to seep out and fill the room...  
It soon concentrated into a humongous ball of white, ectoplasmic mist...  
"He's coming..." E Gadd cried. "Everybody... RUN!!"

Daisy immediately sprinted for the door and ran out. Luigi ran after her. Mario watched the mist beginning to take form...  
"Mario, GET OUT OF HERE!!" E Gadd ordered. But E Gadd stood his ground in the middle of the room.

Daisy began to climb the ladder back up to the surface, but realized E Gadd and Mario weren't with them. "Wait, Luigi! Where are E Gadd and Mario?!"  
Luigi looked back and saw they weren't coming. He ran back and looked through the door. Mario appeared ready to run his ass outta there. But E Gadd stood still staring at the white cloud that was looking more like a bloodthirsty King Boo every second.  
"Professor! What are you doing! C'mon!! He's gonna kill you!!" Luigi shouted.  
"Go on ahead!" E Gadd screamed. "I'll catch up in a minute! I have some things to say to this demon first..."  
"But he won't listen to yo-!"  
"JUST GO!!"  
Luigi waited a second before reluctantly turning around and running towards the ladder where Daisy waited. Mario ran right behind him. "Let's get out of here!" he exclaimed.  
"But what about E Gadd?" Daisy cried.  
"He'll be OK," Luigi assured her.

Daisy started to climb the ladder. Luigi followed, with Mario right below. However, while they were climbing, a humongous crash shook the building! A warning siren rang madly and red emergency lights flashed all over.

"PROFESSOR!!" Daisy called out.  
"He'll be OK!" Luigi reassured her. "Just keep climbing! He'll be OK..."

E Gadd stood in the middle of the Ghost Portrificationizer Room, staring at the white mist as it shifted like mold into the shape of King Boo. E Gadd's heart pounded as the mist finally took it shape... a Boo with gleaming red eyes, a large blue tongue, and a golden, jewelless crown...  
"Look at you..." E Gadd said angrily. "You were a monster then and you're a monster now!"  
King Boo's eyes flashed like fire. He let out an ear-splitting shriek and began to grow.  
"Sacrificing your mind for power... Just like every cowardly king before you!"  
King Boo opened his mouth and revealed rows of long, razor-sharp yellow teeth, They grew bigger as King Boo did, but E Gadd didn't move.  
"You used the knowledge of a defenseless little boy to get you what you wanted!! How much more of a wuss could anyone be!!"

King Boo snapped his jaws inches from E Gadd's face. He looked down and roared ferociously. He was now almost as tall as the ceiling...  
"The Crucifix never meant anything to you!! You only made God think so, is that it?! You only used it because you wanted revenge on the one who took your wealth! Is that it, Voltaire?! You risked becoming even more of a beast just because of MONEY!?"  
King Boo stared down upon E Gadd, his eyes filled with raging fire...  
"You fooled God and you fooled Satan... Hell is too good for you! You don't even deserve to EXIST, you heartless son of a-!!"  
King Boo opened his gaping jaws and lunged at E Gadd. It was a miracle that E Gadd managed to jump out of the way, seeing how large King Boo had become, but he did. King Boo missed and bit into the control panel of the Ghost Portrificationizer. A large chunk of the machine exploded in a ball of fire, causing the warning sirens and emergency lights to go crazy. King Boo shrieked and fell backward. E Gadd used the distraction to run out of there unnoticed. He needed to catch up with Luigi, for he still had no idea what Luigi's plan was...

* * *

Bowser waited impatiently outside. Neither Kammy, nor any of the guys inside had shown for five minutes. Just when he started to get bored, he saw Kammy flying high overhead. She seemed lost.  
"HEY KAMMY! DOWN HERE!!"

Kammy stopped and looked down. She flew down and stopped in front of Bowser. "Oh, thank goodness I found you, your Massiveness! I had no idea where you guys ran off to, so I flew over the forest to see if I could find you... and here you are!"  
"Good, so since you're here, that means you got some news. What's the scoop?"  
"Well, Wario and Waluigi were in the hands of some jar collector ghost named Jarvis. He imprisoned Wario and Waluigi in a maze of jars. When you jumped in one, you would come out another! It was crazy! We saw Waluigi's head sticking out of one and his legs sticking out of a completely different one! Wario was too fat to fit in one and come out another, but I'm rambling now. Anyway, we saved them and got that ghost to cross over by taking pictures of his jar collection and posting them on the Internet. We then found Toadsworth hiding in the corner of the downstairs Bathroom, so he was boring... Oh, and Donkey Kong was found in the presence of some angry little girl named 'Sue Pea'..."  
"Sue Pea?! What kind of joke were her parents playing when they named her that?"  
"That's what I said! Anyway, DK couldn't get free because she was gripping him in her sleep like he was her teddy bear or something, so we did the whole 'put whipped cream in her hand and tickle her nose' gag. It was great! She got kinda pissed off though, so she got out of the bed to slaughter us, but once she got up, she crossed over!"  
"...That's it? Her unfinished business was to get out of bed?!"  
"It would seem so."  
"Pssh! Well THAT'S dumb."  
"I know. But hey! We've saved all the party guests, and we're now trying to help all the ghosts in the mansion cross over! It'll take a while, but since our team's grown by four people, it's a lot easier. We'll be done before you know it!"  
"What about Mario?"

"No, there's still no sign of him. But we're looking."  
"Good."  
"And... what are you doing out here? Where are the others?"  
"They're inside. They followed King Boo and his friend in there and now I have no idea what's going on. All I know is that I should be waiting for a surprise, but I haven't seen anything surprising yet..."

Just then, an explosion was heard from within the building! Sirens rang from behind the door and red lights flashed through the window! "What the HELL!?" Bowser and Kammy cried.  
Just then, the front door burst open, and out ran Luigi, Daisy and...

Mario?!

Mario choked at the sight of Bowser and Kammy.  
Bowser jumped. "What just happened?! And... Mario?! What are YOU doing here?! Wait... don't tell me... YOU were King Boo's partner, weren't you?!"  
"Ummm, yeah, that was me..."  
"Oh, now I'm REALLY gonna stomp your lilly ass!!"

"Wait!" Daisy screamed. "We have to run! King Boo's coming and he's crazier and deadlier than ever!"  
"No!" Luigi cried, "We should wait for E Gadd."  
"Screw E Gadd!" Bowser said. "I don't wanna see King Boo's ugly mug again! Let's leg it!"

But Luigi remained hopeful that E Gadd might be able to come out alive. "I'm waiting," he said.  
Everyone looked at him like he was absolutely crazy.  
"But Luigi," Mario argued, "What if E Gadd doesn't escape and King Boo kills him? What if King Boo just pops out and just kills us all?"  
"I'm willing to take that risk," Luigi said quietly.  
"And even if E Gadd does make it out," Daisy wondered, "Where are we going to run to?! You still haven't told us!"  
"...Back to the mansion." He answered.  
"Back to the mansion??" Bowser blurted. "Why? We'd just be going around in a circle!!"  
"No we wouldn't," Luigi insisted. "Look, I don't know what you guys believe, but I believe E Gadd's gonna make it. I'm staying. You all can run if you want."

Mario, Daisy, Bowser and Kammy looked at one another, as though waiting for each other to run. But no one did. Partly because they were willing to wait for E Gadd, and partly because they knew they would get lost in the woods if they decided to run just then.  
"Alright," said Kammy, "You all can stay, but I'm flying out of here!"  
"Wait!" Luigi shouted, stopping her. "I think we may need your magic to help us..."

"What? How! My magic wouldn't work on King Boo!!"  
"I don't need you to attack him or anything. I might need you, though, in order to make my idea work. I need to ask E Gadd something first... when he comes out."  
"Yeah, with King Boo right behind him!" Bowser growled.  
"Hey, shut it, you fat tub of lard!" Daisy screamed. "Luigi knows what he's talking about, so just listen to him, OK?!"  
Bowser shut his mouth and backed up. "Sheesh. OK, you crazy bitch. Geez, Luigi, good luck controlling your girlfriend in bed."  
Luigi and Daisy both gawked and looked at each other, embarrassed.

Suddenly, the front door swung open...

And every was relieved to see E Gadd run out and stumble to the floor. His lab coat was torn and his glasses were broken. Luigi ran over to help him up. "Professor, what happening?!"  
"King Boo... he's... coming... We have to go!"  
"OK, but first, would King Boo still be able to find his way around the mansion even with no intelligence?"  
"Probably. His basic memory would likely... Wait, what? Why?! Are you planning on going back there!?"  
"Yeah, I thought it was a pretty stupid idea, too..." Bowser said.  
"Shut up, Fat Boy!" E Gadd ordered. He quickly turned back to Luigi. "Anyway, why do you need to know?"  
Luigi turned to Kammy. "Kammy, can you use your magic to block the light of the moon?"  
Kammy turned her broom and looked up at the moon. "Hmm... probably. I'd need to get closer, though."  
"OK, now listen," Luigi commanded, "Fly back to the mansion, and find a way to get as close to the moon as possible to block the moonlight. If you can, try and find a way to do it right when you see us coming!"  
Kammy asked no questions. "OK, I can create a cloud to completely block off the moonlight, but once I do, it will only last for about five minutes."  
Luigi's eyebrows rose. "Only five minutes?"  
"I'm afraid so..."  
Luigi would've reconsidered had not the ground begun to shake violently. "That's fine! Just GO!!"

Kammy nodded and flew off at full speed.

The remaining five watched in shock as E Gadd's shack suddenly exploded from within! They shielded their eyes from the rain of dust and wood, and when the dust finally cleared...  
They stared into the most hideous Boo face they'd ever seen. And it towered at least 10 feet over them. It opened its mouth, revealing rows of yellow, jagged teeth.  
"OH SHIT! I'm outta here!" Bowser screamed. He began to run his ass off through the trees.  
"LET'S GO!!" Luigi grabbed Daisy's hand and they began to run. Mario followed behind, and E Gadd struggled to keep up. King Boo let out a loud cry and began to pursue them through the trees.

Luigi and Daisy sprinted, dodging trunks and stumps left and right. Ahead, they could see Bowser running frantically, but they could see he was veering slightly in the wrong direction. "BOWSER!!" Luigi tried to call to him. "You're going the wrong way!!" But by the time he finished, Bowser had already disappeared.  
Luigi looked back and saw Mario and E Gadd running for their lives. It was amazing how King Boo's massive form so swiftly drifted through the trees. He was going right through every single one! He was catching up and a frightening rate, and Luigi feared E Gadd would get ripped apart by those hellish teeth any second.  
Daisy looked back too. "Oh my God, Professor! Hurry!!"  
E Gadd was running a few paces behind Mario, but he was slowly falling behind. He was panting so hard his eyes were starting to tear up. He wasn't going to make it. King Boo's eyes shone with glee...

* * *

"IS EVERYONE READY??" Kammy called out.  
"YEAH!!" Everyone responded.

Kammy had zoomed back to the mansion in less than a minute and called everyone outside. She was pleased to hear that most of the Portrait Ghosts had now been helped along to the afterlife, but right now, they needed to focus on helping Kammy get close enough to the moon to cover the moonlight. She explained quickly, but the explanation was enough to get everyone riled up. Kammy immediately told them her idea and got everyone into place.

As a matter of fact, everyone was involved in the plan, save for one. Peach had refused to help. She was still in the mansion, searching for Mario. She hadn't even stuck around for Kammy's explanation of things, in which she explained that Mario was expected to return with the others. But the fact is, Peach was about to get a big surprise either way...

Yoshi, Wario, Waluigi, Donkey Kong, Toadsworth, Geno and Kammy were all set up on the mansion's roof. Yoshi's tongue had been stretched out between the elevator tower and the left chimney stack. DK had pulled the center of the tongue down onto the surface of the roof. Kammy stood against it and DK pulled Kammy and the tongue back like a huge rubber band. Toadsworth, who had mastered physics and geometry in college, instructed DK in exactly where to position Kammy and the epicenter of Yoshi's tongue so they could properly target the moon...  
That's right. They were planning to use Yoshi's tongue as a slingshot in order to allow Kammy to accelerate to the moon fast enough so she could shroud the moon's light as soon as Luigi and the others were seen. Yoshi didn't seem to mind, though. In fact, he rather enjoyed his usefulness in the situation.

"You two doing alright over there?" Wario called to Yoshi and Waluigi, keeping a firm glove on the end of Yoshi's tongue.  
"You bet!" Waluigi called back.  
"YOSHI!!"

Wario stood on the elevator tower, holding one end of Yoshi's tongue. Waluigi held onto Yoshi on the chimney stack, just to make sure Yoshi didn't lose footing.

"Yoshi tongue fling Witchy Lady to moon?" DK questioned.

"Yes," Kammy said, "Now pay attention! Geno's looking out for the Toad's signal right now!"  
Geno's job was to look out for Toad's signal. In fact, everyone was on the roof except for Toad. He was on top of a tree bordering the forest with a flashlight in his hand. He was to look out for Luigi and the gang, and when he saw them coming, he would wave the flashlight around in the air. Geno would then order DK to let go, thereby launching Kammy and her broom straight towards the moon.  
"TOAD!! Any sign of them!?" Geno called.  
_"I'll wave the flashlight when I see them, OK!!" _Toad cried back, barely audible.  
"OK!!" Geno answered. He wasn't sure what Toad had said, because he was so far away, though.  
And so Geno waited... Waited for the flashlight to shine and unleash all hell...

Toad was having some difficulty staying on top of the tree. His weight caused it to shift one way and another, and the evil, ghostly breeze flowing around didn't make things easier. He didn't have much to do, though. All he had to do was shine the flashlight when he saw signs of Luigi, Daisy, E Gadd, Bowser, Mario, and King Boo coming. Easy!

For a moment, Toad almost forgot what the hell he was doing up in that tree, until he heard something.  
A scream...  
A stampede of several feet...  
A ghostly shriek...

Toad peered through the leaves and saw something deep within the woods. It looked like three bodies and a huge, fluorescent white ball giving chase...  
Three bodies? Wasn't he looking for five?  
But he had no time to think. They were approaching fast.

"It's them alright!" Toad cried. "Oh no, what do I do what do I do what do I do?!... Oh yeah, the flashlight!"  
Toad whipped out his flashlight in order to turn it on, but far too swiftly. The flashlight slipped from his hand.  
"NOOO!!" Toad cried, but he missed his attempt to save it. He watched it fall into the dark foliage below.  
"Oh no..." he said. He looked and saw the King Boo and the three people had advanced considerably. They were so close! Toad needed to give the signal! Or SOME signal! But Geno was so far away... yelling wouldn't help much! What should he do?! Toad was panicking like crazy. He'd dropped the one thing he needed most at that moment and had no time to retrieve it. King Boo and his victims were moving fast, and he needed to get the word to Geno to launch Kammy!

Toad began to dig around in his pockets for something he could use. "Err... I know it's... around... somewhere... AHA! My Solar-Powered Flashlight!"  
Toad held it in the air and flipped the switch, but it didn't turn on.  
"Huh...? Wait, I know there's some catch... What is it again...? Oh, right! It's solar-powered! It needs light to turn on!"  
And so, Toad pulled another flashlight out of his ear and pointed it at the solar panel of the solar-powered one. However, this flashlight wouldn't turn on.  
"Dang, outta batteries!" Toad grunted.  
And so Toad pulled another flashlight out of his nose and took out the batteries. He put the batteries in the second flashlight, pointed it at the solar panel on the solar-powered flashlight, and turned it on.  
The panel absorbed the rays and powered up the solar-powered flashlight! Toad aimed it up triumphantly, and a pillar of light pierced the night sky!

When Geno saw the light, his heart skipped.  
"LAUNCH THE WITCH!!" He yelled.  
"What?!" Kammy asked, startled.  
"Launch witch!" DK exclaimed. And with that, he released Yoshi's tongue...  
...And Kammy was slingshot'd towards the moon like a speeding bullet!  
"YAAAAAAGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!" She screamed as the clouds zipped by and the moon rushed towards her at phenomenal speed. Despite the high velocity, Kammy was able to raise her wand...  
And once she got close enough, she waved it around and cast the spell!  
A black cloud quickly swirled in the sky and engulfed the moon in total blackness in a matter of seconds. The area around the mansion now lay in utter darkness.  
"YEE-HA! We did it!" She screamed happily. "Let's hope Luigi can do whatever he needs to in these five minutes..."

* * *

E Gadd ran as fast as he could, but every breath welled up pain in his chest. He wasn't going to make it. King Boo laughed in delight as though he knew E Gadd would make his next meal...  
Luigi looked back and saw the Professor struggling to stay just one step ahead. Daisy looked back too. They couldn't run back for him. King Boo was moving too fast. They would be killed. They could only watch as E Gadd ran ever slower and King Boo grew more eager to chomp on his bones by the second. They were just about ready to say good-bye...  
But then, they were both surprised to see Mario run backwards, fling E Gadd up on his shoulders, and begin running again! Mario had saved him!

Luigi was so overtaken with joy that he didn't see the mansion coming into view through the thicket of trees. He prayed that Kammy had a plan to block the light of the moon...  
As they continued to run with the colossal beast behind them, they saw an unexpected sight. A flash of light shone from the top of a nearby tree, and from the roof of the mansion, it looked like a missile had been launched... straight for the moon! Could it be...?  
Luigi and Daisy broke the edge of the forest and were now in the small clearing in front of the mansion door. Mario, with E Gadd on his back, followed close behind, and they all ran across towards the mansion porch. King Boo pursued still, cackling evilly.

...And just as Luigi and Daisy took their first step onto the porch...  
The world suddenly became engulfed in darkness.  
Kammy had done it! Luigi had no idea how, but he didn't care. The moonlight was now blocked off from the world!  
...But not for long. Luigi knew he had precious little time, so he had to use the darkness to lure King Boo to the Secret Altar, and fast...

It was all but impossible to see in this darkness. Luigi put his hands out in front of him as he ran across the porch to feel for the mansion's main doors, but found himself slamming into them instead. He heard Daisy do the same right next to him. Mario and E Gadd hit the door right between them.  
All three looked back and saw King Boo flying towards them. The ghostly glow he emitted made him easy to see, but he looked very confused. He suddenly slowed down and began to look around. His eyes narrowed in frustration, and he went on a rampage, flying around, snapping his massive teeth, hoping to catch something in them. Luigi used this moment to open the door. He let the others in, and proceeded to shut it quietly.

Luigi breathed heavily. "Everyone OK?"  
"Yeah," Daisy said. "My God. That was the scariest thing I've ever been through!" She sighed and closed her eyes.  
It made Luigi worry to see, or rather hear, Daisy so scared and tired. He put his hand on her shoulder to comfort her.  
"Luigi," E Gadd said, hopping off of Mario's back, "You may be wondering why King Boo thinks he can eat us if he clearly passes through everything. Well, that's because he can! If he can see something, he decides whether he wants to be able to physically interact with it or not! This darkness is the perfect idea, old boy!"  
"But Luigi!" Mario said, "Kammy said this darkness will only last five minutes! I'm still not sure what you're planning to do to him, but having King Boo run around outside like a headless chicken isn't gonna help!"  
Mario was right. They needed to lure King Boo, but not by sight.  
By sound...

Luigi slowly walked over to the door and opened it again. He peeked through and saw King Boo still roaming around outside crazily. Luigi then gathered his energy and slammed the door as hard as he could.

Luigi then ran back to the center of the room with the others. "Wait for it..." he whispered.  
They waited for a few seconds...  
And suddenly, King Boo burst through the doors, screeching furiously! Daisy covered her mouth to keep from screaming, and E Gadd nearly toppled over.

But King Boo suddenly became confused again. He was sniveling around like some animal. He still couldn't see them...  
Luigi looked towards the door that led to the hallway. All they had to do was go through the doors, right down the hall, down the stairs to the basement, through the Cellar, through one more hallway, and they'd be in the Secret Altar...  
Luigi wondered how they should go about using King Boo's sense of hearing to lure him there...

King Boo's eyes flashed blood red as he began to fly around the Foyer, snapping his jaws, hoping to ensnare something. Luigi watched him and was absolutely stunned as to why King Boo would give up his brain just for the sake of power. Just look at what he'd become...

But that was the least of their concerns. They had to get King Boo to the Secret Altar, and quickly. At this point, they probably had less than four minutes left.  
Luigi thought a little bit. The route to the Secret Altar wasn't very far, so running was an option. However, even if the run wasn't far, King Boo could still totally maul them. Was it worth the risk...?  
Luigi eventually figured it was. He clenched his fists, got into running position, and took in a deep breath...

"RUN!!"  
And with that, Luigi bolted for the hallway door.

Daisy, E Gadd, and Mario were all startled by the outburst from the dark, but they understood. They heard Luigi's footsteps and did their best to follow them. They eventually all made it through the door.  
King Boo, however, had heard the outburst too. And he could distinctly hear the sound of their footsteps scurrying down the hall...  
He flew towards where he heard the footsteps, but smacked his face against the door! After a brief pause, King Boo realized the door's presence and flew right through it. He turned right and flew down the hall towards the sound of running footsteps.

The four were having difficulty running through the dark. They stumbled several times, but they did their best to keep their balance, for a trip and fall only meant good-bye. Luigi, who was leading the pack, kept his hands outstretched for the door that led to the basement staircase. Mario, who was the last of the pack, turned around periodically to see King Boo still following the sound of their footsteps, his jaws opened wide, ready to devour him whole...

Luigi was running so frantically he smacked right into the basement staircase door. He heard Daisy smack into the door right next to him a split second later, and E Gadd do the same right after. He then felt Mario run into him forcefully. King Boo had heard the noises and now began to fly down the hallway at the faster than before. They needed to get the door open!

A mishmash of eight arms struggled frantically to reach the doorknob in the dark. Mario managed to get it once, but he felt it pushed off by about five or six other hands trying to do the same thing. After a few panic-filled seconds, Daisy finally got a firm grip on the knob and pushed the door inwards. King Boo heard the sound of the door opening and shrieked excitedly. He began to fly at the four with incredible speed.

"JUMP!!" Luigi shouted.

Luigi jumped down several steps of the staircase ahead, but he couldn't see in the dark and suffered a bit of a rough landing. Daisy dove down with Luigi and bumped into him as she landed. Mario did a stylish leap right over the banister and landed roughly right near the door leading to the next room. E Gadd tripped and tumbled like a fleshy boulder all the way down the steps, knocking Luigi down as he did. Thankfully though, they all managed to get down far enough on the steps just as King Boo flew through the door. He seemingly forgot there were stairs here that the four could've descended, and instead flew straight ahead into the chandelier that hung over the staircase. As Luigi and Daisy ran down the rest of the stairs to greet Mario and E Gadd at the bottom, they heard the sound of King Boo crunching mercilessly on the chandelier and felt tiny shards of glass raining down upon them.

It was a miracle that they'd gotten this far. All they had to do now was run through this door, go through the Cellar, through the two hallways, and they would be in Luigi's desired destination - The Secret Altar.

"C'mon!" E Gadd whispered loudly. "Luigi, where to next?! We gotta get moving now while King Boo's distracted!"

"I know," Luigi said, "But I just got an idea. I recently bought this sweet little backlight for the GameBoy Horror. I haven't tried it out yet, but maybe we can use it to see a little bit!"

"Are you crazy?!" Mario asked, trying to keep his voice down, "We can't use any light! King Boo'll see it and know it's us!"

"Don't worry! It can't be _that_ bright!"

"Oh, stop wasting time Luigi!" they heard Daisy say. "The darkness is gonna lift any minute now! Now tell us where it is we have to go!"

"Just one sec and let me turn the backlight on..."

"Luigi! NO!!"

But Luigi flipped the switch. The backlight shone far brighter than he expected.  
And it shone right on Daisy.  
King Boo caught a glimpse of the light and looked down.  
And saw Daisy, completely illuminated. Her eyes wide in terror...  
King Boo smiled evilly and shot down with amazing speed.  
"LUIGIIIIII!!" Daisy screamed. She tried to move, but King Boo dove down like a bloodthirsty hawk, opened his mouth, and bit down hard on her upper right arm.

The swift attack caused Luigi, Mario and E Gadd to all stumble backwards. Luigi, who had been holding the GameBoy Horror, caused the light to flit away from the scene. After hearing Daisy's desperate cries, Luigi shone the light on King Boo to see what he was doing. He gasped in fright and disgust at what he saw.

King Boo had his jaws fastened on Daisy's arm, growling and snarling like an angry beast, tugging and trying to pull the flesh off of Daisy's arm. Daisy was screaming and trying to break loose. She used her free arm to try and hit or push King Boo off, but her arm went right through him. She even tried grabbing his teeth, but her hand flew right through them, too. All the while, blood dripped down her arm and all the way down her dress as she fought frantically to free herself. Her futile efforts frustrated and scared her. How was she going to break free?!

Luigi stared in shock at the scene before him. It scared him so much...  
But it also made him angry...  
Angry at King Boo, and angry at himself.  
He had to save her. He wasn't going to sit by like a coward.  
Not again.  
He was going to save her. Somehow. He wasn't going to wait for Mario or E Gadd to make the first move. He was going to make the first - and only - move.  
King Boo squealed in pleasure as he tore ruthlessly at Daisy's arm, trying to rip the meat off. Daisy screamed in fear and agony. Her cries gave Luigi the courage to make his move...

Luigi boldly turned off the GameBoy Horror, casting the staircase in darkness, except for King Boo and his ephemeral light. Luigi suddenly bolted forward, slid underneath King Boo's body, and delivered a powerful kick right under King Boo's tail! King Boo screeched in pain, opening his mouth wide, releasing Daisy's bloody arm. King Boo flew around in a fury, screaming in pain. Luigi wasn't exactly sure where he had kicked King Boo, but it must've been a sensitive spot! C:  
"C'mon, everyone! The Secret Altar's just through the Cellar and down the hall! Hurry!" Luigi screamed. He felt around for the doorknob, and when he found it, he opened it and ordered everyone through.

In the darkness, Luigi heard Daisy run past him through the door, quivering with each deep breath she made. Luigi felt so bad for her. How could he have been so careless? His carelessness had almost gotten her killed... many times. At that moment, King Boo was the least of his concerns. Right then, he just wanted Daisy to be OK...  
Once everyone was through the door, Luigi took a deep, sorrowful sigh and ran through, closing it behind him.

* * *

"Holy crap, it's dark! Who'd have thought the moon gave off so much friggin' light? I'd say mission accomplished, guys!" Wario leapt triumphantly off the elevator tower, but because he couldn't see the floor, he endured a bit of a rough landing. Waluigi and Yoshi hopped off the chimney as well.  
"Damn right, it's dark! I thought the stars were a little brighter than that... Meh, oh well. Won't be dark long, will it?" Waluigi asked  
"Hahah! Witch lady fly fast!" DK laughed.  
"YOSHI!!"  
"Well, well, mission accomplished indeed!" Toadsworth announced. "I suppose now is a good time to tell you all that I actually failed geometry and physics in high school, and that all my calculations were all wild guesses!"  
"What?! Why, if I could see you right now I'd..."  
"Ah, settle down Wario. Show the lucky doofus some mercy."  
"Lucky... Doofus?! Why, I must say, I don't believe I deserved such a verbal beating!"  
"YOSHI!"

Geno stared out into the darkness, but couldn't see Toad, or anything, for that matter. "TOAD!" he called as loud as his throat allowed. "SHOW US THE LIGHT!!"  
Geno waited nervously...  
Until a light finally flickered from a treetop in the distance. It was so dark that the light seemed almost blinding, but Geno was glad to see Toad was OK.  
"Well, I ain't got no idea what's happening here," Wario said, "But I hope whatever Luigi and them are up to, I hope they do it alright."  
"Oh, Wario! Have some faith, old boy! I'm sure everything is going just fine..."

Suddenly, a worried voice came from below in the mansion courtyard. "HELP!! HELP!! Someone's in trouble!!"  
Toadsworth immediately recognized the voice. "Princess Peach??"  
"Yes! Toadsworth?? Where are you?? I hear your voice coming from above..."  
"I'm on the roof, my lady!!"  
"What?! Why?!"  
"Princess, if you had stayed and listened to what Kammy had to say when she came back, you'd have known everything!"  
"Oh... well, who's up there with you??"  
"ME!!" cried Wario, Waluigi, Geno, and DK.  
"YOSHI!!"  
"I'm up here!!" called Toad's voice from the tree. He waved his flashlight around so Peach could see.  
Peach was confused. "What are you all doing on the roof?!... and in a tree...? Oh, never mind! Listen, there's trouble in the mansion!!"  
"What trouble?" Everyone asked.  
"Well, I was looking for Mario in the mansion when suddenly, the entire place went pitch black! I was in the 1st floor hallway at the time, so I figured I'd make my way to the Foyer and wait there for help. But on the way, I heard a bunch of people running through the hall. It was so dark, I couldn't see who. I was about to see where they went when I saw King Boo fly down the hall after them! He was humongous! At least 10 feet tall! Once he passed, I immediately made my way through the dark out here. I figured everyone was still outside, but I didn't think you all were on the roof and... in a tree... but my point is, I heard one of the people, and it sounded like Mario!"  
Toadsworth sighed. "Again princess! If you had just stayed and listened, you would have known that Mario was expected to return to the mansion with Luigi, Daisy, E Gadd and Bowser!"  
"What?! But that makes no sense! Luigi, Daisy, E Gadd and Bowser were the only ones that left to go after King Boo! Why would Mario be expected to return with them?!"  
"Well, Kammy didn't exactly explain that part..."  
"URRGGHH!! Whatever! Listen, I heard them running towards the basement stairs! I have a really bad feeling about this, so let's get down there as fast as we can and help them!"

"Very well," Toadsworth said. "Let's take the elevator down into the mansion and help them out, eh?!"  
"YEAAAHHH!!" Everyone on the roof exclaimed.  
"How am I gonna get down?!" Toad cried.  
"Just jump headfirst! Your big head'll absorb the shock!"  
"Oh, OK..."  
And so Toad did. Though, he bounced rather high upon hitting the ground and landed on his face. "Oww..."

And with that, Toadsworth, Yoshi, Wario, Waluigi and Geno found their way to the elevator, and Peach and Toad ran in through the front door. Kammy had now begun to fly back to earth. Her wand was worn out, and would be a few hours before she could cast another spell. She just hoped that whatever it was Luigi was planning to do, that he'd do it fast...

* * *

Luigi, Daisy, E Gadd, and Mario had managed to fumble their way through the dust-filled Cellar and through the basement hallway. The only one among them who knew anything about where they were going, other than Luigi, was E Gadd. He was a little confused at first, but it didn't take long for him to figure out why Luigi was hoping to lead King Boo into the Secret Altar...

The four finally found themselves scurrying into the final, curved hallway right before the Secret Altar. It seemed strange that King Boo hadn't given chase since he'd attacked Daisy back at the basement staircase. Probably just busy licking Daisy's blood off his teeth. Thinking about it made Luigi feel so terrible. If he could just see where she was right then, he'd have apologized to her and given her everything.

When the group was about halfway down the hallway, a familiar shrieking sound was heard from beyond the door they had entered through. They heard a loud BANG! on the door...

And then their nightmares were realized when King Boo flew through the door and began to zoom down the hallway right towards them!

"DUCK!!" Luigi shouted, dropping down on the hallway floor on his stomach. He heard his three companions all do the same.

King Boo perked his head up at the outburst and began to fly up and down the hall like a maniac, snarling and snapping at the air. Luigi's outburst had made it clear to him that there was prey lurking within this corridor, and that it wasn't going to escape alive.

Finally, after several seconds, King Boo slowed down. He was still sure that someone was in there, but he decided to take his time. He floated up and down the hallway slowly, glaring his ugly teeth and growling menacingly. With each pass he did, he floated mere inches above everyone's heads.

Luigi still couldn't see for anything in this darkness, but he knew which direction the door to the Secret Altar was. They were so close... And yet, the moonlight was bound to return any second now. He needed to get King Boo through that door!

And yet, as Luigi thought, he heard Daisy's quivering breathing next to him. She must've been in so much pain...

After waiting for King Boo to pass over again, Luigi carefully reached over and felt Daisy's dress. Taking a guess, he put his hand where her arm was. The arm that was still intact. He felt it and rested his hand there. Daisy gasped as quietly as possible. "W-who is that?"  
"It's me, Luigi..."  
"Luigi? What is it?"  
"Daisy... I know I've made a lot mistakes, and I've gotten you hurt so much... And now it's about time I made up for those mistakes."  
"What do you mean?"  
"I..."  
But he stopped, for King Boo once again floated above their heads, snarling to himself.  
"I have to do this..."  
"Do what?"  
But she already heard him shuffling away.  
"No!" she whispered as loud as she could. "Luigi...!"

Using the darkness, Luigi quickly, but quietly, crawled on his stomach towards the Secret Altar's door. Once he reached there, he stood up slowly. King Boo was at the far end of the hall, and was now working his way back. His eyes seemed to glow more red by the second, and Luigi feared that King Boo's frustration would suddenly get the best of him soon.  
And the moonlight would return in mere seconds...

Luigi carefully took out his GameBoy Horror.  
He closed his eyes...  
And flipped it on.  
The backlight illuminated his face. His angry, unafraid face.

King Boo immediately caught sight of the light. He flew down the hall and saw Luigi's brightly lit face. King Boo laughed wickedly and zoomed at him like a wild animal!  
E Gadd, Mario, and especially Daisy were all surprised and scared at Luigi's action. What was he doing? Why was he risking his life like this?!  
"NOOO!!" Mario cried. Once King Boo flew over his head, he jumped up and ran after him. E Gadd hopped up and stood there, his eyes wide.  
Daisy tried to lift her body up, but her injured arm prevented her. She screamed as King Boo darted at Luigi with sharp fangs and gleaming eyes...

Luigi saw the open jaws flying at his face at amazing speed, but at the very last second, Luigi suddenly reached behind him, opened the Altar door, and rolled forward, right under King Boo's charging body! King Boo had been tricked into flying right into the Altar!  
Luigi stood up triumphantly, and looked forward. The hallway suddenly began to glow with a faint blue light...  
The moonlight. It was back.  
Luigi was so glad he'd done it in time. He continued to stare forward until the light was bright enough to see Daisy, Mario, and E Gadd's faces.

But they weren't smiling faces like he'd anticipated.  
They looked... scared...  
But why?  
Daisy suddenly called out. "Luigi! LOOK OUT!!"  
Luigi had no time to react. He suddenly felt King Boo's six-inch teeth jam into his left shoulder! A few even sank into his neck. He could feel the blood beginning to pour down his shirt already.  
"AAAAGGGHHHH!!" Luigi screamed, as he tried to reach back and pull King Boo off of himself.

Luigi realized he hadn't opened the door all the way, and that King Boo had merely bumped into it and never entered the Secret Altar! He also realized that he'd dropped the GameBoy Horror at his feet. He tried to reach down for it, but King Boo's strong jaws pulled him back. "HELP MEEE!!" He called out. The pain in his shoulder and neck grew ever worse.

Mario suddenly bolted forward and slid past Luigi and King Boo. He kicked the half open door all the way open.  
E Gadd then ran forward and picked the GameBoy Horror off the ground. "Cover your eyes, Luigi!" It took a lot of willpower, but Luigi took his hands away from his throbbing shoulder and covered his eyes. E Gadd turned on the backlight and threw it on the ground, where it blew up like a flash grenade! King Boo was blinded by the blast! He released Luigi and backed up, squirming, trying to console his eyes.  
Daisy had finally managed to stand up, and then suddenly ran up to King Boo, screamed, and delivered a high-heeled kick right in his face!  
They had done it! King Boo was thrown backwards into the Secret Altar!!

All four cheered and ran inside. Luigi and Mario quickly used their fire abilities to light all the candles aflame. The room now shone a God-like gold.

They were sure of it now. The judging would begin...  
Now.

However, as they waited, they realized nothing was happening.  
Luigi, Daisy, and Mario were confused.  
Even E Gadd.  
King Boo did nothing but float there, staring at them.  
No Great Arbiter. Nothing...  
What was going on?  
"All Boos who visit a holy site are meant to be judged..." E Gadd whispered. "Why aren't you going to Hell?!"  
_"Because,"_ King Boo snarled, _"I am no Boo!!"_

All four were taken aback. Had King Boo just spoken?! But how?! Why?! And... what did he mean he wasn't a Boo?!  
"What do you mean?" Luigi asked.  
King Boo smiled wickedly. _"I am no Boo... I do not meet the conditions needed to become a Boo. You know that, Professor, do you not?!"  
_E Gadd stammered. "B-but then... what are you?"  
King Boo's smiled vanished. _"I am a lost soul... a soul banished from both Heaven and Hell. St Peter will never accept me, and the Devil wants nothing to do with me. Even the Great Arbiter can't judge me now..."  
_"But then, how can you cross over?" Daisy asked.  
King Boo smiled again. _"Only if I choose to, my dear..."_  
"And... what is your choice?" Mario asked.  
_"Hmmm... let's see... I think I choose... to stay! HA!"  
_"But why...?" Mario continued his inquiry.  
_"Because, fool, I have some business I still need to take care of..."  
_"What business...?"  
King Boo stared down upon Mario and grinned evilly. _"THIS!!"_  
And with that, King Boo shot forward with his mouth open. He latched his teeth around Mario's face, and ripped it clean off.

"MAAAARIOOOO!!" Luigi cried in grief. Mario's body flopped on the ground, lifeless, blood flowing from the fleshy pulp where the face once was. Luigi knelt beside him and wept. Daisy turned away and sobbed, and E Gadd closed his eyes in sorrow.  
King Boo let Mario's face hang from one of his long, yellow teeth. He laughed with pleasure at his deed. _"It was clever of your father to change his last name, Luigi. But not clever enough..."  
_Luigi stared at King Boo angrily. "You bastard!! What will be left for you once you kill me, too!? What will you live for!?"  
_"If 'live' is really the optimal word..."_ King Boo said in a comical tone. _"I'll tell you what I have to live for... I will spend my days rallying up my undead army to overthrow the living! The living should serve the dead, not the other way around! That's what I've always believed!"  
_"I'll never let that happen..." Luigi said angrily.  
_"Why does it matter to you?!"_ King Boo asked, mockingly. _"You're to suffer the same fate as your brother... RIGHT NOW!!"_

King Boo opened his mouth, ready to attack, but Daisy suddenly leapt forward and embraced Luigi.  
"NO!" She cried. "I won't let you!!"  
Luigi looked at her, surprised.  
King Boo was surprised as well. _"Hmph, stupid girl! I don't wish to kill you! MOVE!!"  
_"I... no, I won't move! I'll stand here forever if I have to!!"  
King Boo narrowed his eyes. _"Fine... I'll kill you BOTH then!"_

Daisy closed her eyes and buried her face in Luigi's chest. Luigi held her and stared at King Boo's widening jaws. Luigi and Daisy held one another as King Boo prepared to lunge forward and slash them apart with his teeth.

However, just as King Boo was about to make his final move, the Secret Altar door suddenly burst open! Yoshi, Toad, Geno, Wario, Waluigi, DK, Toadsworth, and lastly Peach, all ran in, screaming threats and preparing to tackle King Boo down once and for all!  
E Gadd, Luigi, Daisy, and even King Boo were stunned!  
However, upon seeing King Boo's massive form and razor-like teeth, they all suddenly screamed and retreated to a corner of the room.  
"Goodness, he looks absolutely vicious!" Toadsworth cried.  
"What are we gonna do now?" Geno asked, worried.

Peach then caught sight of Mario's dead body on the floor.  
"No..." she whispered.  
Ignoring King Boo floating over her, she ran to his side and turned his body over...  
And when she saw he had lost his face, she did not scream, but merely began to cry.  
All the party guests were shocked and were filled with grief at the sight before them...  
Mario was dead.

Peach looked up at King Boo angrily. "What did you DO to him!?" She asked angrily.  
King Boo laughed. _"What does it look like? I ate his face off!!"  
_Peach turned her head and continued to weep over Mario's body.  
King Boo then turned towards all the other guests, who were still against the wall, cowering in fear. _"And that's exactly what I'm going to do to all of YOU!"_ King Boo showed his monstrous teeth to the crowd of guests. None of them knew what to do. This could be the end for them...

Suddenly, Toad jumped forward. "WAIT! I know what to do in this type of situation! CUE SEXY MUSIC!!"  
Some exotic music suddenly started playing out of nowhere. Toad stood in the center of the room and provokingly ripped off his vest, revealing his torso.  
Everyone stared. "How the HELL is this helping?!" Wario asked.  
Everyone then gagged when Toad ripped off his white pants.  
"And who the HELL would get turned on by that?!" Waluigi wondered.

The Altar door suddenly opened again, and in came Bowser and Kammy!  
"Sorry I'm late," Bowser said, "I got lost in the woods, and then it got all dark, and then I... WHAT THE-?! Holy crap! This mansion has a strip club in the basement!? Ho, and all this time I thought this room might be that Secret Altar you all were babbling about! Sweet!! I'm gonna go crazy! W00t!!"

And so Bowser pulled out a coin and attempted to stick it between Toad's butt cheeks.

_"ENOUGH!!"_ King Boo yelled. _"I will not let some erotic Toad stop me from doing what I've been planning to do for seventy years!!"  
_He turned back to Luigi and Daisy.  
"I shall now have the pleasure of killing off the Rioma family bloodline for good..."  
"YOSHI!!" Yoshi cried as he leapt forth to attack. He lashed out his tongue, but King Boo caught it with his teeth. He then gruesomely yanked it, pulling it right out. Yoshi squealed in pain and tried to console his bleeding mouth. His tongue was the length of his body, so when King Boo pulled it out, it caused such severe trauma on Yoshi's insides that he fell down dead in seconds.  
Toad ran at King Boo, butt-naked, not exactly sure what he was going to do, but King Boo merely chomped off Toad's fungus head. Toad felt lifelessly to the ground, his head eaten whole.

Everyone charged at once, but King Boo easily slaughtered them all. Luigi and Daisy watched in horror and sorrow as their friends lost in a shower of blood and gore. Their deaths were too horrible and gruesome to describe...  
All that mattered was that they all lay dead, in a pool of blood and mangled body parts.

King Boo licked the red off his teeth and looked back at Luigi and Daisy.  
"...And finally, YOU...!"

King Boo got ready for the attack. With teary eyes and heavy hearts, Luigi and Daisy held each other tighter than ever. This was the end for them.  
King Boo launched forward, and Luigi watched as those horrible teeth flew at his face. He closed his eyes and prepared for the end.

But nothing happened...

He opened his eyes, and was shocked to see he was now all alone in some dark place. No Daisy, no King Boo... Just blackness, all around. Where was he?  
A figure then floated up to him in the shape of a man. Luigi recognized the person... in fact, he looked a lot like Luigi himself, only much older.  
"_My grandson, Luigi..._" The man's voice was so airy and ethereal, like a ghost's.  
When Luigi heard what the man said, he was at first confused. However, it didn't take long for him to realize...

"L-Leonard?!"

The specter of Leonard Rioma nodded and stroked his grey mustache. "_All these years, I've merely watched as Voltaire has attempted to end the bloodline of our family. I regret that I've done little to try and stop him... All I truly ever did was convince your father to change his last name, but I knew Voltaire would catch on eventually. And now, it has come to this..._"  
"Leonard," Luigi said. "It's OK, don't feel bad. I'm sure I can stop him, if you help me."

"_I cannot help you..._"  
"Huh? But... why not?"  
"_It doesn't matter why. Just answer me this, do you wish to further preserve and protect the Rioma family chain, or do you wish for Voltaire to cross over for good?_"

Luigi thought a bit. If King Boo, or rather Voltaire, succeeded in killing him, he would later go on to overthrow the living... Luigi couldn't let that happen. "I guess I would want King Boo to go to Hell where he belongs," Luigi said. "But... why do you ask that? Why can't I do both?"  
Leonard closed his eyes and sighed. "_...Voltaire's true business here on earth is to stop the Rioma family chain. However, you must not give Voltaire that honor. You must find a way to end the chain... but not by his hand._"  
Luigi looked up. "...Not by his hand?"  
"_Yes. Doing so will certainly give Voltaire the will to be judged..._"  
Luigi thought that made sense, but still... "How can I do that?"  
Leonard sighed again. _"There is only one way, my dear Luigi..._"  
"What way? Tell me."  
"_You can figure it out, can you not?_"  
"No..."  
"_Well, think of Daisy. The woman you love._"  
"Umm... OK..."  
"_Would you ever let anything happen to her?_"  
"Never."  
"_Then you must do the only thing that can ensure her protection. Think, you know what it is you must do..._"  
Luigi took this new knowledge to heart and thought deeply. Then, almost magically, the realization came to him...

"Yeah... I think I understand."  
"_You're sure you want to do this?_"  
"Yes. It's the only way."  
"_Very well..._" Leonard then handed Luigi a knife. The very knife Voltaire had committed suicide with seventy years ago. "_Good luck, my dear grandson..._"  
"Thanks... grandpa."  
And with that, a bright light flashed and Luigi found himself in the Secret Altar again, with Daisy still in his arms.

King Boo was making his final dash, but Luigi quickly pulled Daisy out of the way.

King Boo growled and whipped around for another attack, but was surprised to see Luigi holding a knife.  
_"What are you going to do with that?"_ King Boo asked.  
Daisy, who was standing nearby, wondered too.

"Voltaire Mortegarth..." Luigi said lowly, putting a lot of emphasis on the name, "I... I can't let you know the pleasure of killing me..."  
King Boo snarled. _"Fool! You have no choice! There's nothing you can do to stop me now! And I no longer go by that name! I am KING!!"  
_But Luigi wasn't listening. He was focusing on Daisy.  
"Daisy, I'm sorry..."  
Daisy was confused. "Sorry for what, Luigi?"  
"I just want you to be safe... please forgive me..."  
"I don't understand!" Daisy cried. "What are you trying to tell me!?"  
Luigi gripped the knife handle in his hand. "Just trust me, Daisy. I have to do this. For you..."  
"Do what? Why?"  
"...Because I love you."

And with that, Luigi took a deep breath, and plunged the knife into his heart.

Daisy and King Boo both gasped as Luigi limply fell over backwards. He was dead before he even hit the ground.

"No..." Daisy uttered, covering her mouth. "No... NO...! LUIGI!!" She ran over and lifted his head up slowly. She stared into his face. Though his eyes were closed, and tear trickled from his right eye and rolled down his cheek. "No. Luigi...!" Daisy choked. She put her face close to his and began to sob in grief..

King Boo stared at Luigi's dead body, the red in his eyes receding. His mouth hung open slightly, as though he just could not believe what he was seeing. His eyes then faded to a soft yellow, and shifted from rage-filled to completely sorrowful.

_"No..."_ he stammered to himself, _"It... It can't be... It was my entire reason for life after death. My entire reason for avoiding pursuit of the Devil himself. My entire reason for becoming the monster I became... It was my obsession to kill this man..."_

King Boo's eyes filled with tears as he continued to stare longingly at Luigi's corpse, the knife plunged into his heart. The very knife he had killed himself with, all just to make this day possible.

King Boo looked up at the ceiling...

He then closed his eyes and lowered his head in shame.

Mere seconds later, a vortex of black fire began to open in the floor directly below where King Boo floated. As the swirling vortex grew larger, it began to draw King Boo into it. Not taking his wet eyes off of Luigi's body, King Boo made no attempt to fight it. The roaring black twister sucked him down like a hungry beast. Destination - Hell.

Just as King Boo disappeared into the fiery pit of doom, Leonard's voice was heard from the air.

"_Good-bye Voltaire..._"

Daisy was left sitting in the Altar all by herself, still crying with Luigi's face pressed against hers. She had looked up long enough to see King Boo's final judgment, and it filled her with joy that they had succeeded in their mission.

Well, _she_ had...

Daisy looked around at the carnage around her. All her friends and loved ones... dead. Killed in a foray of gore and blood.

And Luigi... He had killed himself just to save her and the rest of the world.

But now, she was the only one left. All the rest had given their efforts to prevent King Boo's wishes from coming true, but in the end, they had to pay the ultimate price - their lives. Daisy was the only one to be spared, and it made her feel so sad that she proceeded to cry over Luigi's body again.

But then, at that moment, something magical happened...

A bright light filled the room. So bright that Daisy had to shield her eyes.

The light then suddenly disappeared as quickly as it had came...

Daisy looked around in awe. There was no more blood. All body parts were now reattached to their hosts. And, almost instantly, all of her friends who had seconds ago been lying down dead began to rise up! And they were all completely OK!

Even Mario! His face was back on!

"What in the world...? How are we still alive?" Peach asked, holding her head.

E Gadd jumped up in excitement. "Why, of course! Don't any of you remember?! If someone is unwillingly killed by a ghost, then they can be revived if the ghost that killed them crosses over! Therefore, if we're alive again, that must mean..."

"King Boo crossed over!" Geno exclaimed.

"KING BOO CROSSED OVER!!" Wario and Waluigi shouted.

"King Boo gone!" shouted DK.

"YOSHI!!"

Everyone celebrated the victory with happy hoots and hollers. However, their celebrating was short-lived when they all finally realized the scene that was happening on the other side of the room.

Daisy was still weeping over Luigi's body. Everyone was shocked to see he had a knife plunged into his heart.

When E Gadd saw this, he immediately understood. "...King Boo's unfinished business was to kill Mario and Luigi. He succeeded in doing away with Mario, but when it came time for Luigi to die... Luigi must've killed himself to prevent King Boo from fulfilling his wishes. And to save Daisy, as well as all of us..."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the room began to share Daisy's sorrow for Luigi, their fallen hero. He'd given his own life to save theirs. He was indeed braver than any of them could have ever imagined.

But Daisy was the most grieving than anyone else. She just could not let him go. She continued to cry for a long time.

"Thank you, Luigi..." she said into his ear. "I hope somehow, wherever you are right now, you can hear me. I just want you to know... I've always wanted you to know..."

Daisy took a quivered breath and sighed.

"I love you, too..."

Daisy was just about to resume her sobbing when she heard the sound of a blade dropping to the ground. She then heard everyone in the room gasp in surprise.

Daisy looked up and examined Luigi with wet eyes.

The wound in his heart... the blood... gone!  
And a cough...  
A cough from Luigi's throat...  
Could it be...??

Daisy's heart skipped when she heard Luigi groan and sit up. He shook his head and opened his eyes...  
Daisy smiled bigger than she ever had before. "Luigi! You're alive!!"  
With that, she jumped on top of him and hugged him, knocking him right back down. Everyone sighed in relief and couldn't help but smile either.

"But Luigi, you were dead..." Daisy quivered.  
"I was," Luigi said quietly, "But... when I died, I found myself in a bright place. There was this magnificent golden man dressed in robes... He told me that my sacrifice had earned me a second chance!"  
E Gadd jumped. "Luigi! Do you realize that you just met the Great Arbiter!?"  
"Yeah, that's kinda what I figured," Luigi laughed.  
"That was very brave of you..." Daisy said.  
"...Thanks, Daisy."

Peach then ran over to Mario. "Mario, where were you this whole time!?"  
Mario frowned. "Peach, I..."  
"...He was helping us the entire time!" Luigi interrupted.  
Mario stammered to finish, but finally said, "Umm, yeah! Helping..."  
"Well, I'm so glad to have you back, love!" And with that, she gave him a quick kiss.

"Well," said Toad, "The night's still young! Let's get this party STARTED!!"  
Everyone stared at him like he was an idiot. "Get dressed, Toad!!"

* * *

The party was once again in full swing. With everyone's help, all the Portrait Ghosts had crossed over, and Boolossus ended up following King Boo to Hell with him. It was 1 am now, so they still had a few hours left 'til dawn. Geno sat happily with Mallow, who had evidently been revived when Wario and Waluigi won a dance-off against the Floating Whirlindas, thus causing them to cross over. Geno looked as happy as ever, and Mallow was just glad to be alive. "Thanks Luigi!" he called from across the ballroom.

"No problem, Mallow!" Luigi shouted. He and Daisy were sitting in chairs along the wall. Mario and Peach danced lovingly in the middle. Toadsworth was gorging himself with chicken with Bowser and Kammy. Yoshi and Toad were seen pouring ice down Wario's overalls, and Waluigi laughed hysterically.  
"Luigi strong! Maybe stronger than Donkey Kong!" DK said as he passed. Luigi laughed at the remark.

E Gadd then stepped in front of Luigi. "Luigi... I just wanted to say thank you. For everything."  
Luigi was ready to respond, but then frowned. "Umm... Listen, E Gadd. I'm sorry about everything you lost. Your Poltergust 3000... Your Ghost Portificationizer... Your GameBoy Horror... Is there any way I can pay you back?"  
E Gadd just laughed. "Naw, it's quite alright. It was with those things that I tampered with the laws of life and death in the first place. Something I never should've done. Maybe having all my equipment blown up is the best thing for the world. Guess that's something else I oughtta thank you for!"

Luigi laughed too. "No, thank YOU, Professor! I'd be nowhere without you! You're the best!"

"Oh, well... cool!" E Gadd exclaimed, trying to sound hip. He then gave Daisy a sly look. "You two have fun now!"

And with that, we walked off to eat some more brownies.

Daisy turned to Luigi. "So, Luigi... did you hear what I said to you when you were gone?"  
Luigi turned to her. "You bet."  
Daisy blushed a little. She then leaned over and gave Luigi a quick kiss on the lips. Luigi smiled wide, and looked up towards the Heavens. "Thank you..." he said under his breath.

The romantic song playing suddenly cut off. "C'mon, let's play some GOOD music up in this joint!" Bowser roared.  
"YOSHI!!"  
And with that, an upbeat remix of the Mario Bros. 2 theme began to play.

"Wanna dance?" Daisy asked happily.  
"Absolutely," Luigi replied.  
The two took hands and walked onto the dance floor, ready to rock the joint!

Luigi had just started getting his groove on when he happened to turn his body so he was facing the Storage Room door.

Suddenly, he froze. A cold tingle ran down his spine as he saw the Storage Room door suddenly open ever so slowly... On its own. He stared at the darkness beyond the door, the pace of his heart quickening rapidly. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end. The door... What had opened the door...??

Luigi jumped when he felt Daisy's gentle hand touch his shoulder. "Luigi? Is everything alright?"

Luigi stared silently at the Storage Room door for a little while longer.

It took some convincing, but he was eventually reassured when he saw nothing beyond the doorway.

"_Just a draft,"_ Luigi finally told himself. _"Nothing to be afraid of..."_

"Luigi? Is everything alright?" Daisy asked again, sounding slightly nervous.

She was happy to then see Luigi turn around and look at her with a big smile on his face. "Yeah..." he replied. "Everything's perfect."

And with that, the two proceeded to dance on the dance floor, happy to have one another...

And just happy to be alive.

_**/\THE END/\**_


End file.
